A silly question about feeding birds...

I have been feeding the birds through the year with an all-year seed mix, and peanuts are now back on the menu again (I was out of nuts for a while). A few weeks ago I treated myself (and the birds) to a nyger seed feeder, and at the weekend finally managed to get some seeds for it. When should I start to offer this new seed?

 

I should think you could start anytime. They attract Goldfinches very nicely. They will start to grow where ever they fall though.

 

I would start now , lots of natural food about but I bet any new babies this year wouldn't mind a easy meal .

I bought the seed once and put in a normal feeder and by the morning the wind had blown all of it out !!! I dont know what the plants look like but I had what looked like lots of mini thistles growing all over the lawn and borders the following spring

Spruce

 

Let the birds know where they can find food well before the snows settle.

Cheers, Tony.

 

I'd put it out now...the adult goldfinches have been feeding off mine all summer give or take the odd week....
@Spruce...i did sow some nyger seed a couple of years back ..out of curiosity...not a bad border plant...tall approx 4ft with little heads on like mini sun flowers...not a bad filler for the borders

 

Thank you for the replies, and a clear consensus!

 

I put Nyjer seed out all year round,
Goldfinches, Siskins and Redpolls in Winter and Spring
Goldfinches, Siskins and (occ) Greenfinches in Summer.
Goldfinches, Autumn.
Sparrows sometimes go for Nyjer if there is nothing else.

 

Finally got my act together and got the seed in the feeder, and hanging off the bird table yesterday.

Weird feeder, it has a plastic liner, I assume that is to stop the seeds flying out as you fill it, as they do slip out of the holes very easily. I have not seen a bird on it yet, but I do have various finches here, maybe they are not looking at feeders yet? All the other feeders are being mobbed!

A thought I had, has anyone gathered cobnuts cracked them and put them out for the birds? We have loads of hazel trees, and therefore loads of nuts. They don't taste particularly good, but the squirrels seem to love them (we have red squirrels here, so they are more than welcome!), so I am hoping that the birds might be interested too?

 

you have RED Squirrels Sian? your so lucky!

 

One of the advantages of living on mainland Europe :-)

There are a few escaped grey squirrels near the centre of Brussels, apparently, but I have never seen them. I have seen quite a few chipmunks though, but not here!

 

we supposedly have the Red's here too (in the area even) but i've personally never seen one or a Grey for that matter in the flesh! actually that's not quite true...i did see something vaguely squirrel shaped shoot up a tree once...but thats about all i saw

 

The only time I do not put out bird feed is August (I think I read somewhere way-back-when that you shouldn't feed them in August because there is plenty of natural food around).

 

I only feed the birds in my garden between September and late April as they tend to stop using the feeders anyway due to there being natural food about.

 

I don't tend to feed our birds in summer, but the majority of the year I feed them suet balls and suet pellets (I get a tub of variety ones, different flavours ) and occasionally seeds

 

Probably not the best pic, but Niger seed is the yellow flowered plant to to right of the Ensete (red banana).