The CHICKADEES Rental War

Bird feeders in the snow Someone have kindly put up these bird feeders on a tree in a public space
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After a long snowy winter as I get to work in the garden I discovered the need to completely redo the birdbaths, birdhouses and other bird-friendly aspects of my garden. Rain, snow, and ice did major damage to the pond, the birdbath fountain, the decorative birdhouses and all the bird feeders. Wow! I didn’t have this much maintenance on my own house. Of course, the bears took out their spring energy on the decorative bird feeders and the raccoons keep hanging off the more unique bird feeder because they appear to love that seed mix. Is there a seed mix that doesn’t attract as much wildlife as it does birds?

I love fancy birdhouses, so do my feathered visitors. They flock to the unique bird feeders and great designs of the decorative birdhouses and argue over who gets to move in. I have a decorative birdhouse shaped like a lighthouse and 2 sets of chickadees got into a rental war before one moved in and made it her own. Some of the residents of my garden prefer the birdhouse feeders. I guess that way they don’t have to go far for food, live upstairs eat downstairs. I also appreciate the more unique bird feeders, especially those designed to thwart the squirrel population. Will someone please explain to me how I can have 4 different kinds of squirrels in one yard?

The raccoons keep taking the pump out of the pond to play with it and they burn out the motor so I decided to switch to a birdbath water fountain where they couldn’t reach the pump. This works great but makes sure to place some rocks in the basin so if someone falls in they can get out again. Even if you have raccoons make sure to have running water in the form of a small birdbath fountain, a birdbath or a pond. Your birds need and enjoy the sound of bubbling water and the availability of fresh water especially as we go into the dog days of summer. Enjoy the finer things in life this summer, enjoy your garden!

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