This competition has now closed. Congratulations goes out to our winner ‘Frances H’. We hope you enjoyed this giveaway with Happy Beaks, and please keep an eye on our competition page for future competitions.
And whether you’re taking part in this year’s Big Garden Birdwatch, or just love to fill your garden with feathered friends, here are some helpful tips…
8 ways to make your garden more bird-friendly
Brightly coloured sunflowers provide a nutrient-rich food source for birds
Image: Sunflower ‘Beaches Mix’ seeds from T&M (©Rob Smith’s Allotment)
There are lots of ways to create a bird-friendly garden that’s teeming with wildlife. For quick results, put out some high quality bird food and see who drops in. But if you’re looking for long-term gain, concentrate on improving your garden design, changing your planting scheme and sowing the flower seeds that birds love. Here are some ideas to help bring birds to your garden.
- Add a wide range of bird feeders: Try a variety of hanging feeders, bird tables and ground feeders and keep them topped up all year round with seeds, fat balls, peanuts and mealworms. Find expert tips on the best place to position bird feeders here.
- Hang nest boxes: Make sure you put them in a sheltered spot away from full sun, strong wind and driving rain. Here are some top tips for putting up a nest box.
- Supply clean water: A well-maintained bird bath is a welcome treat in the summer and vital in the winter when other water sources are frozen. Find everything you need to know about bird baths here.
- Don’t use pesticides: Switch to organic pest control so birds don’t accidentally end up as collateral damage. Read our full article on pest control methods for a thorough examination of all the options.
- Choose bird-friendly plants and flowers: Whether it’s a place to shelter or a natural food source, your planting scheme plays a huge part in making birds feel safe and welcome in your garden. Here are five of the best plants and flowers to attract birds.
- Plant hedges: Small birds especially love the security of a leafy hedge, and all birds enjoy feasting on the insects, fruit and berries that they find there. Read our hedges for wildlife article for more information.
- Create a quiet corner: Section off a small area and keep it free of noisy children and pets to allow birds to feed, roost and nest in peace.
- Boost the insect population: Build insect hotels, leave undisturbed areas of longer grass and even dig a small pond. Improving the overall eco-diversity in your garden will tempt birds to visit regularly and even make nests. Read our tips on creating wildlife habitats for more ideas.
If you love to wake up to a dawn chorus that continues all day long, providing food and water and shelter is the best way to fill your garden with birds. For a wealth of information and advice on wildlife gardening, visit our dedicated hub page.
The Thompson & Morgan horticultural team produces a wealth of content around gardening and food production. Since the first seed catalogue was published in 1855, Thompson & Morgan has grown to become one of the UK’s largest Mail Order Seed and Plant companies. Through the publication of our catalogues and the operation of our award-winning website, Thompson & Morgan is able to provide home gardeners with the very best quality products money can buy.
We are making a sincere effort to encourage more birds and other wildlife into our garden. Winning this would be amazing!
Thanks for the opportunity to make my garden more wildlife friendly.
So hope I win. Fantastic lot of goodies for the birds and garden.
I love feeding the birds. Have numerous robins, pigeons . Blue tits. So this would be really great to win
I have a friend in a Nursing home . He is unable to look after himself after a massive stroke and is unable to walk so he sits in his chair everyday. His one pleasure is the bird table outside his window so he can watch the birds and squirrels feeding. They give him so much joy. I’d love to win this prize for him. So he is able to keep feeding his visitors.
I am a warden at a local Nature Reserve and fill the feeders twice a week. I fill the feeders knowing that the birds will love the food and there is no waste. As we rely on contributions by visitors, it’s great to know their contributions are going on top quality and no waste.
good luck
Use happy beaks bird seed, the birds love it, also have Thompson and Morgan plants from QVC, such a good selection of different sorts of plants.
I would so love this, I need more wildflowers in my garden to support the insects we get and to add some extras to the birds I feed as well would be epic. Thank you T&M and Happy Beaks for this fabulous prize!
thank you for your wonderful prize and helping to keep the wild life fed and warm. Fantastic opportunity for everyone to participate and to learn. enjoy and to recognise wild life
Magic!
Great products !
Love your seeds and plants you have such a good variety
I would love this as we love feeding the birds and having lots of wild flowers.
We get lots of birds visiting us in our garden & also at our allotment so we try to feed them as much as we can, this lovely prize would certainly help with that
I like happy beaks
Great prize my visiting birds would love it
Lovely idea
Beautiful
cheers
Thank you, helping the Wildlife in my Garden is important to me.
Great prizes, I have ordered a bird book so I can identify the different birds on our allotment
Love feeding birds in my garden and see what different ones visit
Would love to win
Thank you for your Thoughtful Giveaway . The Birds Need a Little help and Tender Care in this Weather .
Would love this for my garden birds
Would love to win this as it would help fill the 13 feeders I fill up every other day, fingers crossed.