Any tips for trees, shrubs, or other features that attract chickadees, nuthatches, and woodpeckers rather quickly? (1 Viewer)

[Avon Avians]

Hello folks!
My question is pretty straightforward, I guess, and kind of speaks for itself.
Nonetheless, I will go into more detail.

Our backyard in New Hampshire has a fair abundance of black-capped chickadees, white-breasted nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, and hairy woodpeckers.
Although I enjoy watching them from where they hang out, unfortunately we don't have any trees near our house to watch the birds from a closer perspective.
The simple solution would be to plant more trees. However, many trees take a rather long time to grow very tall, and I'm not sure if they would attract birds as saplings.
I know that the best trees (and shrubs) for attracting birds are those that bear fruit or nuts.
But again, the problem is that many species take several years to produce yields of edible fruits or nuts.
Oaks, for example, can take several years, often over 20 years, to produce acorns, and we can't exactly plant a 19 year-old oak in our yard.
So to summarize, I guess what I'm asking is are there any trees or tall shrubs that attract birds like chickadees, woodpeckers and nuthatches within a short period or time?
I know that chickadees are rather easy to please in terms of cover, but I believe that nuthatches and woodpeckers generally prefer taller areas to shelter.
Or are there any other ways to attract these birds to the front of our house that don't take several years?
I know that some poplars grow insanely fast, but people generally advise against planting those.
(For those living outside of North America, advice on attracting their Eurasian contemporaries like tits and spotted woodpeckers will probably be helpful, too.)

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks! God bless!

 

[KenM]

Perhaps purchasing a “hide”…..erected as close to your existing trees and shrubs as would be acceptable and away you go.👍

Cheers

 

[MikeInPA]

Perhaps purchasing a “hide”…..erected as close to your existing trees and shrubs as would be acceptable and away you go.👍

Cheers

Errrrr Ken…….ummmm……..he might not know what a “hide” is, he is American after all. He would know what a “blind” is though.

I tell you, after 21 years I’m still learning. Bumper-fender, boot-trunk- bonnet-hood, hide-blind etc etc.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Cheers

Mike

 

[KenM]

Errrrr Ken…….ummmm……..he might not know what a “hide” is, he is American after all. He would know what a “blind” is though.

I tell you, after 21 years I’m still learning. Bumper-fender, boot-trunk- bonnet-hood, hide-blind etc etc.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Cheers

Mike

🤣🤣🤣👍

 

[Avon Avians]

🤣🤣🤣👍

?????
No really, what's this "hide" thing?

 

[KenM]

?????
No really, what's this "hide" thing?

I believe you would call it a “blind?”

Cheers

 

[Jefrs]

Our tits, your chickadees, are mainly seed eaters, they will hunt insects when feeding young. Their natural habitat is high in the foliage. Attract then down with a seed feeder they can hang from. They will not feed from the ground.
Nut creepers, tree hatches and woodpeckers mostly eat insects. They will take nuts and seeds in winter. Attract them with mealworm (chicken feed). Some woodpeckers will ground feed, mostly not. So you need a feeder they can cling to. Everything likes mealworm, our robins will dive into the opened tub of then when I'm trying to fill the feeder.

 

[etudiant]

New Hampshire has cold winters, so a decent feeder is a guaranteed draw for the birds you mentioned.
Obviously appearances matter and I don't know how well it would fit in, but a decent pole feeder, with a squirrel baffle and dispensers for seed and for suet cakes will get you customers quickly. Just remember to use shelled sunflower seeds, the husks kill the grass otherwise.
Audubon sells a good single feeder offering, my experience with multiple feeders hanging from a central baffled pole has been excellent.
Note that a source of open water in winter is very attractive for all birds, so a heated bird bath is a lower overhead option.

 

[Avon Avians]

I believe you would call it a “blind?”

Cheers

Oh, okay.
Thanks for the suggestion. I honestly was not very acquainted with the use of blinds.

 

[Avon Avians]

New Hampshire has cold winters, so a decent feeder is a guaranteed draw for the birds you mentioned.
Obviously appearances matter and I don't know how well it would fit in, but a decent pole feeder, with a squirrel baffle and dispensers for seed and for suet cakes will get you customers quickly. Just remember to use shelled sunflower seeds, the husks kill the grass otherwise.
Audubon sells a good single feeder offering, my experience with multiple feeders hanging from a central baffled pole has been excellent.
Note that a source of open water in winter is very attractive for all birds, so a heated bird bath is a lower overhead option.

Yeah, I'm sure you're right. Thanks!

 

[Jefrs]

The RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) sells probably the best feeders on the UK. The advantages are they are fit for purpose, robust and easy to clean. They will probably not be available across the pond but you can get the idea from their website. RSPB Shop | Bird Food, Bird Care & Nature Themed Gifts & Homewares

 

[Jefrs]

Oh, okay.
Thanks for the suggestion. I honestly was not very acquainted with the use of blinds.

Probably not needed in a garden. The birds seem to expect you to be there. Provided you don't leap about, are still in your movements and don't silhouette, birds often seem to ignore you even though they know you are there. When it is cold you will probably want to view from a window anyway.

 

[Avon Avians]

Probably not needed in a garden. The birds seem to expect you to be there. Provided you don't leap about, are still in your movements and don't silhouette, birds often seem to ignore you even though they know you are there. When it is cold you will probably want to view from a window anyway.

Yeah, in my opinion, windows are the best "blinds" for my purpose. I'm not invisible behind a window, but the view is much better from the inside to the outside than the other way around.

 

[Jefrs]

I have observed that when the dog (Airedale) is loose in the garden, birds will come in as they seem to know that no other predators are present. That the large dog is not interested in birds (except pigeons).
From that I have found I can sit quietly on the patio with the camera and birds will still come to the feeding station 7m away. Often a lot closer -
(blackbird, turdus merula)

 

[Deans Sanctuary]

Almost any variety of:

Old growth tall and full. With an emphasis on actually playing to their needs. As with all living creatures if it feels safe they'll use them. All birds start their days at the top of the canopy and when feeding they'll start staging down to different levels so the more secure the more action you'll get in return. I would build 1 or more observation benches closer to the existing canopy on your property. Placing the feeders at the edge of the canopy. good ole home-made platforms are best. I use those benches with an eye level of 7-8 feet from the ground.

 

[Jefrs]

Almost any variety of:

Old growth tall and full. With an emphasis on actually playing to their needs. As with all living creatures if it feels safe they'll use them. All birds start their days at the top of the canopy and when feeding they'll start staging down to different levels so the more secure the more action you'll get in return. I would build 1 or more observation benches closer to the existing canopy on your property. Placing the feeders at the edge of the canopy. good ole home-made platforms are best. I use those benches with an eye level of 7-8 feet from the ground.

Thrushes are invariably ground feeders, they will take berries from bushes but prefer worms and grubs. Wrens do not fly higher than knee height. Tits/chickadees/titmice are mainly upper canopy, our long tailed tit rarely comes down from up there. Woodpeckers, nutcreepers and treehatches in the main canopy although our green woodpecker can spend most of its time ground feeding, sorting through leaves.

Five levels of habitat in woodland each with their own denizens - floor, shrubbery, under-storey, canopy, upper-canopy.

Here our main garden inhabitants are blackbirds (thrush) and robin (Erithacus rubecula), and house sparrows, all of which nest in our old privet/mixed hedgerow.
Then regular visitors - blue tit, coal tit, great tit, long tailed tit. starlings, feral pigeons and collared doves, wren, grey squirrels. Occasional - treecreeper/nuthatch, gold finch, green finch, jackdaw (they roost nearby), rooks (they untie and fly off with the coconut fat feeders), magpie., dunnock (LBJ). Also present above: red kite; common buzzard; sparrow hawk; carrion crow, bats, barn owl; may hear tawny owl calling.
When it gets cold and snows we'll probably see redwing (thrush) come in from the downland above us. And visits from more open farmland.

Bird feed -
Robin/songbird mix - mixed seeds plus berries, insect and fat; something for everyone here.
Mealworm - for thrushes and robin mainly but everything likes them. In a special feeder to deter starlings mobs but also mesh tray ground feeder, sparingly.
Bird nuts (peanuts) - no - only squirrels really like them and they prefer raiding our hazel tree and squirrel-proof seed feeder.
Coconut fat feeders "buggy" (with insect), fat in a half coconut, seems to be the cheapest form. They all like some fat, helps them overwinter.
Sparingly. Bird food gets dropped and scattered. Most seed eaters do not ground feed, sparrows will, blackbird will eat seeds but excess will attract rats.

 

[Deans Sanctuary]

Hello folks!
My question is pretty straightforward, I guess, and kind of speaks for itself.
Nonetheless, I will go into more detail.

Our backyard in New Hampshire has a fair abundance of black-capped chickadees, white-breasted nuthatches, downy woodpeckers, and hairy woodpeckers.
Although I enjoy watching them from where they hang out, unfortunately we don't have any trees near our house to watch the birds from a closer perspective.
The simple solution would be to plant more trees. However, many trees take a rather long time to grow very tall, and I'm not sure if they would attract birds as saplings.
I know that the best trees (and shrubs) for attracting birds are those that bear fruit or nuts.
But again, the problem is that many species take several years to produce yields of edible fruits or nuts.
Oaks, for example, can take several years, often over 20 years, to produce acorns, and we can't exactly plant a 19 year-old oak in our yard.
So to summarize, I guess what I'm asking is are there any trees or tall shrubs that attract birds like chickadees, woodpeckers and nuthatches within a short period or time?
I know that chickadees are rather easy to please in terms of cover, but I believe that nuthatches and woodpeckers generally prefer taller areas to shelter.
Or are there any other ways to attract these birds to the front of our house that don't take several years?
I know that some poplars grow insanely fast, but people generally advise against planting those.
(For those living outside of North America, advice on attracting their Eurasian contemporaries like tits and spotted woodpeckers will probably be helpful, too.)

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks! God bless!

For Avon or anyone else that have a interest in feeder alternatives as this is now my go to feeder of choice virtually every bird that visits my site will and do feed from the 4 that I have. The top and most important aspect is a somewhat recent composite siding material. Does not absorb water. Tube underneath is my full proof squirrel defense, seem the little critters can't wrap their tiny legs around it. And the attached branches screwed to the top are my full proof hawk defense. They provide a calming effect for the birds that feed and throughout the day many use the branches as perches. On that seems the hawks see it as a bramble situation.

 

[Jefrs]

I don't mind our squirrels. They'll figure out any obstacle, dive off the fence or the hazel tree. They don't drive the birds away.
If you give them a few nuts they ignore the hanging feeder cages.
This baby was as cute as a button. The boar is as big as a cat.

 

[Deans Sanctuary]

I don't mind our squirrels. They'll figure out any obstacle, dive off the fence or the hazel tree. They don't drive the birds away.
If you give them a few nuts they ignore the hanging feeder cages.
This baby was as cute as a button. The boar is as big as a cat.

And they usually get to the spillage before the mice and rats.

 

[Avon Avians]

And they usually get to the spillage before the mice and rats.

Yeah, one thing I used to love about the squirrels and chipmunks back in Connecticut was the way they virtually eliminated corn, sunflower and safflower seed below the feeder, leaving none for the mice.

I put a trail camera out near the feeders several times, and there were no nocturnal visitors.
Probably another important factor was the fact that the feeding area was rather exposed.
Squirrels and chipmunks are more comfortable eating out in the open than rats and mice.

Unusually, we never seem to have had a problem with rats and house mice. The only indoor invaders we got were flying squirrels, deer mice, and the occasional short-tailed shrew.