October is a turning point in the backyard. Summer visitors are heading south, migrants are passing through by the millions, and the birds that will spend the winter with you are deciding right now which gardens are worth sticking around for. Bird experts agree on what makes the difference, and it isn’t a fancy feeder. It’s five small things, most of them free, that are worth doing this month before the first hard frost.
The advice comes up every fall from organizations like the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and it’s easy to put into practice in an afternoon.
1. Clean the feeders before the busy season
Feeders that have hung all summer collect old seed, mold and droppings, and they can spread disease between birds that crowd around them in winter. Take them down, scrub them with hot soapy water, and soak them in a solution of one part bleach to nine parts water before rinsing well and letting them dry completely. Repeat every couple of weeks once traffic picks up.
2. Switch to high-energy food
As temperatures drop, birds need more fat and calories to get through long, cold nights. Black-oil sunflower seed is the single most popular choice, with thin shells and a high oil content. Suet becomes worth putting out once days stay cool enough that it won’t turn rancid, and unsalted peanuts are a favorite of chickadees, titmice, nuthatches and woodpeckers.
3. Leave part of the garden a little messy
The urge to tidy everything in fall works against birds. Seed heads left standing on coneflowers, black-eyed Susans and sunflowers are a natural feeder for goldfinches and sparrows. A layer of fallen leaves under shrubs shelters the insects and larvae that wrens and thrushes hunt all winter. Brush piles and dense shrubs give birds cover from wind and predators.
4. Keep water available
Water gets harder to find as the weather turns, and birds need it both to drink and to keep their feathers clean enough to insulate them. Keep the birdbath filled and scrubbed, and plan ahead for a heater or heated bath when nights start dropping below freezing.
5. Make your windows visible
This is the one most people never think about. Fall migration is a peak season for window strikes, and researchers estimate that collisions with buildings kill somewhere between 365 million and nearly a billion birds a year in the U.S. Most happen at homes, not skyscrapers. Decals, tape or paint markers spaced no more than about two inches apart across the glass, or exterior screens, break up the reflection that makes birds think they can fly through. Moving feeders either very close to a window, within three feet, or well away from it, beyond 30 feet, also helps.
One more for the cold months
Leave nest boxes up. On freezing nights, small birds use them as shelters, sometimes several at once, which is why it’s worth giving yours a quick clean-out now. And when the real cold arrives, one simple gesture does more for chickadees than any feeder.
Clean feeders, richer food, a messier corner, fresh water and marked windows. Five things in October, and a backyard full of birds all winter. That’s the trick.
