Feeder at last, but ...

Fran, I do not know if the birds are attracted by apples, although my fallen apples in the garden are sometimes "started" by blackbirds. Other birds, mostly smaller ones, do not do that. Try corn balls or tallow.

the suet balls were there two days before I added the apples, and they weren't touched either! I'll take the apples out and try sliicing them; i have another metal mesh case, which I'll have to tie down, because i put suet in it before and the squirrels took the whole thing off the hook and over the fence!

It shouldn't take long for the birds to home in Fran!

nods, I've not put any food out for over a year, cos of the squirrels, so it'll take them a while to realise that it's now there. I've got a few more metal feeders, not caged, which I'll also put out as and when.

good luck!! I'm amazed that there never has been a squirrel on my bird feeder. Put out peanuts as and when I can afford them..then come the wood peckers and jays..they eat loads..

I think they need to have the apples lying in space, say on grass before they eat them. Not easy on a balcony. It is mainly blackbirds, Fran, that like them. Now it is warmer they are back to scratting out the leaves, plus lawn boggling, looking for creepy crawlies and protein and feasting on fallen hulled sunflower seeds. There were 6 of them on the path yesterday, but the apples are not in favour, now they can find other feed. I love your picture between the scenic Scotland and Canadian firs on my computer.

lol Lulu, do you want some? There's a good supply here ...

Ok, Dorjac, I'll try it. Or at least slice them and leave them handy. I'm trying to keep the stuff on the fence, or as near to it as possible, so as not to encourage the pests too far into the garden.

Don't think I really do thanks Fran!!!

oh, all right. would have been a prob to wrap them, I suppose ...

The blackbirds are back on the apples and starlings too Fran. They love those dried meal worms thrown among the pots and scattered in leaves at the edge of the lawn. They are not usually table feeders, they love foraging, so I cater to that habit. I think that is why they are in the garden in such numbers. Starlings are so scoffy. They look so gluttonous when feeding, but they do a 'starling' job of tidying up. Like minature vultures really. They picked the lamb leg bone clean by now.

We've had a fox in the garden recently. So far he's eaten the whole turkey carcass (after the soup making) a chicken carcass and now 4 pheasant left overs from a casserole. Tidy!
Do starlings stay in UK over the winter?

Yes they do Lulu....lots in our garden recently. A fox left some noxious carcase in my allium ridden circle and it went on the compost yesterday. I knocked off the maggots for the robin and he was on them in a trice, after I moved away. At least birds can fly off to warmer places when it gets too tough for them.

Ah! A friend told me that what I thought were starlings were in fact field fares....I got all confused!

lol I can tell the difference between a robin and an owl, but after that I get a bit shaky

me too!!

You are so lucky to have some fieldfares in your garden Lulu, I have only ever seen them once in ours!!

I finally took the apples out, sliced them and put them in a square metal feeder; they went pretty quickly. And I've topped up the cage feeder and another metal cyliner with some out-of-date brazil nuts - not sure if they'll mind, but only one way to find out.

For some reason GoY keeps putting my posts under the name of "Iciar" - I did check that ID, in case GoY was making it up, but there is such a user, who's been in GoY longer than me.

Apologies, Iciar, it's not me doing it!

in case it does it again, I'm Franl155!

Third time lucky??? I got the notice on my home page that I had a comment on this photo, just after I'd posted the previous: came in to see who'd added something already, and it was me! it's treating posts by me as if they were indeed from lciar.

sheeee!

I put apples out yesterday and the fox ate them! I was watching her from the window! Also she went off with my freshly made birdcake!

veggie fox??? well, they survivie by being omnivores.

Found out yesterday that that "suirrel proof" bird feeder is nothing of the kind! took over 100 pics, but sigh, camera shake ... well, it was flippin' cold out, even though I eventually leaned on my bedroom window and braced the camera on tee sill, my hands were frozen.

I also put out an old pastic tray with food on for a "ground feeder"; as well as a second nut feeder and a feeder full of fresh home made breaed (I don't have the strength to knead it properly, but I thought the birds wouldn't object as much as I did).

Only seen one bird on the fence so far: the squirrel, even when not stuffing its face, keeps guard on the fence, presumably to keep everything else off.

How about a pea shooter for the greedy squirrel Fran?

I bowled out an apple about an hour ago, onto the lawn, and its nearly all gone. The ? fieldfare is very determined to have an apple feast. Gets bullied by the male blackbirds, but lurks until they chase another blackbird, then jumps on the apple again. The blackbirds loved out of date sausages! I got the last lot of apples from the florist/firework shop! A bowl for £1, a real bargain. Lots of smaller birds on the hanging seed feeders too.

My birds must be really fussy, they don't touch the apples unless I chop them up and if left halved, that's when the fox gets them.
I made chicken consommé last night and the fox got his carnivore fix!

Cor Lulu you must have some hungry foxes round your way. Foxes probably took the sausages, but the tribe of Blackbirds, never seen in the garden before this winter, eat the apples so fast, they get there before the fox. I had a big bag of windfalls and they are nearly all used up. Just been out tidying up after the birds