Although Birding may take some extra effort especially on a cold winters day your efforts will be rewarded by seeing species that may normally not visit your yard and bird-feeders during the spring and summer. Besides seeing all the different species of birds visiting your yard in winter is a wonderful pastime!

Different types of Bird Feeders Different sizes and shapes of bird feeders play a part in what varieties of birds you can attract into your yard. It is also important to have birdfeeders that are easy to fill and to keep clean. It would be especially nice to hang these where we are protected from the cold and rain.

Tube Feeders attract smaller birds and they are usually long thin plastic containers with several seed ports/openings for the birds to feed from.. The ports/openings vary in size depending on the size of the seed. It is always a good idea to make sure the openings on the feeder will accommodate the seed you plan on putting in them. Also the greater number of openings/ports the more birds you will attract. Some tube feeders can even be attached together enabling you to use several different seed types simultaneously, thus attracting several species to your feeder.

Hopper Feeders attract larger birds that would not be able to feed at a tube feeder because it allows these birds to perch and eat. Hooper Feeders usually look like small houses and the roof on these house help to keep the bird seed dry. The roof usually lifts up for easy refill and cleaning. When choosing a Hopper Feeder try and make sure the landing/perch area is large enough to accommodate the bids and that it has a perch on all four sides.

Platform Feeders attract the even larger birds and although they often have a roof on them like the Hopper Feeder they have an open tray on the bottom of the feeder. When choosing a Platform feeder try and make sure it can hold the larger birds but also look for a lip that will prevent the birdseed from blowing away on a windy day.

Suet Feeders attract many different size and species birds. They usually are square plastic coated wire baskets/cages that fit the square Suet Cakes. Some of the fancier Suet Feeders have a roof on them and also have a tail prop to help keep the suet cakes dry and also allow the birds to more easily perch themselves on the feeder.

Fruit Feeders are feeders with a ledge/perch and has a spike in the middle for impaling fruit or whole corn on the cob.

Nectar Feeder is a feeder (usually saucer but not always) that not only allows birds to perch but allows birds with longer beaks such as the Hummingbird to drink the nectar from the feeder.

Van Bourgondien Nursery carries a full line of birdseed, flavors of suet and bird feeders!