New season, new menu

Thank you to everyone who has been following the RSPB’s new garden bird-feeding guidance. You’re helping to reduce the spread of trichomonosis, a disease particularly affecting finches.

I stopped putting out seed for garden birds at the end of April. Fortunately, I’ve been able to maximise our garden’s potential to cater for wildlife over summer with a small pond, hedgerow and mini wildflower meadow. By attracting plenty of insects and other invertebrates, providing water and leaving meadow flower seedheads, I’ve encouraged birds including Goldfinches and House Sparrows to continue visiting.

It’s also felt good to be part of a bigger conservation project, knowing that the simple measures we can take at home should contribute to reducing the spread of disease and give populations of threatened birds a chance to recover.

Time to restart feeding seeds and peanuts

As food resources start to run low in the wild, birds will be travelling further to forage, and by providing food in our gardens we can help them survive the winter. And with the arrival of cooler weather, the risk of the spread of trichomonosis among finches is reduced, meaning that if we follow the RSPB guidance, it’s now a good time to welcome finches back into our gardens.

From 1 November we’ll be hanging seed and nut feeders back up in our gardens. It’s always good to see familiar birds return in autumn after they’ve been foraging elsewhere during the summer, often joined by others that have made much greater journeys from northern and eastern Europe. What will turn up in your garden this winter? We love to hear about your gardens, balconies and window boxes and the birds and other wildlife that visit, so please carry on sending in your interesting observations.

Thanks to our members and supporters, the RSPB, as part of the Garden Wildlife Health partnership, has been able to monitor, research and diagnose the threat to Greenfinches, Chaffinches and other affected birds. Your support has meant we’ve had the resources to publicise our updated garden bird feeding guidance and to work on improved feeder designs.

We’re committed to following the science across the RSPB, and our bird food buyers are working hard to ensure the products we sell help our supporters to feed seasonally and feed safely. We select the best-quality wild bird food, and our shops and the RSPB online shop are relaunching our bestselling sunflower hearts and favourites blends and peanuts, both now in easier-to-recycle paper packaging. Watch out for new special purchases, such as the Big Garden Birdwatch seed blend, available online and in selected retailers.

Check out our full advice on garden bird feeding, and look out for news of the Big Garden Birdwatch 2027 in your Winter/Spring issue of The RSPB Magazine.