Do you bemember the days when bird feeders were as common as coffee percolators in the backyards of every house on the block? Chickadees haven't flown the coop; we've merely lost touch with what makes them tick. Here's how you can transform your yard into that friendly neighborhood diner where everyone feels at home.
Bring Hummingbirds Right To Your Window!
Check Price1. That Ideal "Coffee Break" Distance From Your Kitchen Window
Just like that special spot at the counter where you could see the short-order cook do their magic, chickadees have their sweet spot. Eight feet from your window – just right for watching the action and keeping a safe distance – is a cozy diner booth for them. It’s the perfect distance for them to not be newcomers, but welcomed regulars.
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2. The Classic Perch Setup That Gives Them Regulars Vibes
Think back to the restaurant coat rack hat hangers where diners used to hang their regulars? That's sort of what chickadees need, but in a more natural way. They want a staging area with graduated branches that go from pencil sized all the way down to chopstick sized. That will give them their own coat check, and a place to hang out, watch what's going on, and then dive into the seed for a feed.
3. Your Grandmother's Trick with Black Oil Sunflower Seeds
Your grandma's secret ingredients always made food taste better, and the same goes for the quality of your sunflower seeds. While those cheap seeds might save you some bucks, chickadees and other birds notice the mediocre quality immediately. Fresh sunflower seeds will attract a lot more birds and will be very high in oil content!
4. The "Safety Check" Morning Signal They Can't Ignore
Like that old 'Open' sign flashing on at your favorite breakfast place, chickadees look for specific signs of the morning. The first chickadee calls with its unique 'dee-dee-dee' and it is like a dinner bell for the entire neighborhood. When one calls, you’ll get more guests than at a church potluck.
5. The Hidden Spider Web Collection Site They Adore
Planning to wipe those cobwebs off the porch corners? Consider them a hardware store for nesting chickadees. If you leave a few corners untouched, you will have birds gathering construction materials like your mother gathering things from a yard sale.
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6. Distant Socializing' Between Several Feeders
Just like you would space tables out at a church social, proper spacing of your feeders will keep everyone happy. About six feet apart – the same distance your mother insisted on at dance socials – gives chickadees their comfort zone. It is enough space to get away from the bullies, but close enough to keep an eye on the good stuff.
7. Your Ideal Evening Refill Ritual
Chickadees can often be found at evening feeders just before the sun sets, and since they are known to be highly intelligent, they are the first to find out about new feeders and are able to spread the word very quickly. Just like an evening paper reader, your feeders will get an influx of evening close feed hours alerts, as your evening paper reader will get they do evening close feed hours to get them energy needed for the cold night ahead.
8. That snug little area where your hose used to be stored in the garden.
That corner of the house, where the garden hose used to coil up like a sleeping snake? That's perfect for a chickadee feeding station! It's sheltered from the wind and weather. It is like that corner booth at the diner that all the regulars wanted to sit in.
9. The Three Layer Defence System That They Gossip About
Use department stores for inspiration when designing your yard. You can use a ground floor, a mezzanine, and an upper level. You can have ground level feeding stations and use shrubs for mid-level and tree branches for high-level escape routes. These escape routes would beat the fire escape plans at old elementary schools.
10. Your Sunflower Cleanup Habit That They're Actually Fond Of
Before raking under the feeders, think of the enjoyment that birds will find under the feeders. Birdseed is treasure for ground feeding birds. A little mess will signal Chickadees that this is a well established feeding area!
11. The Old Pine Cone Trick That Still Works Today
Do you remember how your mom taught you how to make peanut butter-filled pine cones? Those stay chickadee magnets! Just like a family recipe, the combination of natural perches with high-energy food attracts the birds like kids to a moving ice cream truck.
12. Shrub "Waiting Rooms" Room Remember
Just like you're an old doctor's office waiting room with magazines, chickadees also like to hang-out in-between feeder visits. They can use a forsythia or lilac to catch up on some bird gossip, preen, and wait for their turn to visit the feeder.
13. Timing Method Your Grandfather’s Water Drip
Remember how precise your grandfather could time things? Now picture that with a slowly dripping water source. One drip every three seconds. About the speed of your grandmothers kitchen timer. The sound of dripping water is very enticing for chickadees coming in to eat.
14. The 'Yesterday's News' Liner That Brings Them Back
First, place the feeder trays with tomorrow's black and white newspaper from the past day on some of the trays. Your mother would line the drawers with black newspaper to attract more chickadees (i.e. your father would see black ink garage sale signs from 3 blocks away), so make sure to swap them out more than weekly church bulletins.
