As a beginner bird feeder enthusiast you going to want things in your garden that will encourage the birds to visit you. In addition to providing water for them to drink and bathe, you’ll want to gibe them a safe place to eat. Of course there are lots of bird feeders that you can put in your garden, but you might want to consider Hopper Feeders – they’re an excellent choice for the novice.
Hopper Feeders are also sometimes called Wood feeders, but they shouldn’t be confused with wooden bird feeders. This feeder is great because birds will feel very comfortable with them. The Hopper Feeders also blend in very well with the rest of your garden and the surrounding environment. If you spend the extra money and get hold of a kiln dried Hopper feeder made from good quality Western Cedar wood, you’ll find it lasts for a long time and it will weather to a beautiful silver gray color.
Another great thing about Hopper Feeders is that you can use them right through the year. Most Hopper Feeders have all-weather screws to help the feeder stand up to whatever type of weather your region will experience. The top of the feeder has easy access which makes storing bird feed and opening the feeder for cleaning a breeze, and since the Hopper Feeder is made from wood the rain will simply run off the top leaving all the seeds inside nice and dry.
Some birds will prefer to eat from a feeder that has a solid perch or platform for them to stand on. Northern Cardinals, Bluejays, Chickadees, Finches and others will always come visit this sort of feeder. Owning one of these large-sized feeders like the Hopper Feeders will allow you to keep several pounds of sunflower and other seed mixtures in it without any worries.
Needless to say, this will mean that you’ll spend less time refilling the feeder and more time spent on bird watching. Of course the larger seed capacity is very important during the winter. The cold winter season means that with less food in the wild, the birds will depend much more on you. Your Hopper Feeders will then provide them with a valuable source of food.
Hopper Feeders come in a wide range of sizes but a good sized Hopper Feeder will measure about 11½ inches in length, 9½ inches in height and its width will be 9½ inches. Because these feeders are made from wood you’ll need to take care where you place them in your garden. Squirrels will take apart any Hopper Feeders that have no protection around them.
Because of this, make sure that your wooden Hopper Feeders are in an place that has no trees or jumping points nearby for squirrels to take advantage of. Getting yourself a good squirrel baffle is another way to deal with the pesky problem.
On the other hand, if you actually like these little furry friends you could just place some extra seed away from your Hopper Feeders for the squirrels to enjoy. But whatever you decide to do, buying any of the Hopper Feeders available will only enhance your garden and ultimately bring a great many more birds to it.
