This week, you can save 10% on live mealworms and wax worms! Enter the code MAGIC10 to activate this discount. Offer ends at midnight on 25th May.
This is a key time of year to be feeding live mealworms and wax worms. The last few weeks have been extremely cold (considering it is the month of May) and we have had really cold strong winds, rain and even hail stones! This inclement weather creates a challenging environment for adult garden birds to raise and feed chicks, and also look after themselves. We know that flying insect numbers have declined by a whopping 60% over the last 20 years in the UK, and one way to help garden birds out is to offer live mealworms or waxworms, particularly during the breeding season. Whilst they are not a perfect substitute, they are high in protein and water content – and of course they wriggle, which attracts garden birds to investigate. Blackbirds, house sparrows, starlings, robins, wagtails, wrens, long tail tits, coal tits, blue tits, great tits and woodpeckers will all be attracted to live mealworms, taking them off to feed hungry youngsters that are waiting in the nest or lurking under hedgerows in anticipation.
Live foods are very easy to offer. They should be placed in a container with upright sides (to stop them wriggling away). Here are some options which we have, ranging from window feeders to hanging feeders, to feeders for your flower bed, but as you can see from the photo below, we just use a relatively heavy ceramic kitchen bowl.
If you haven't fed live mealworms before, and would like more information, our Live Bird Food Tips are a great place to start.
This week, we are offering our customers a 10% discount on purchases of live mealworms and wax worms. So if you are swithering about trying them out, now is a good time to make the move!
Please enter code MAGIC10 at checkout to activate your 10% discount. Offer ends midnight on 25th May 2026.
Order Your Live Foods Here >>
Keeping your bird baths clean
Whilst communal bathing can be glorious, it can also leave a bit of a mess in the bath. If you have been keeping up with my previous newsletters about the importance of bird bath cleanliness to protect garden birds' health, I am sure you are redoubling your efforts to clean them daily and replenish with clean water. THANK YOU!
I thought I would share this top tip from a lovely customer who has it nailed! This is a big stone bird bath which is heavy and cumbersome to empty and clean. The top left photo shows the accumulated dirt from just ONE DAY! After scrubbing the stone, she placed a simple pot plant tray in the bird bath. It is light and easy to lift, clean and replenish. Happy days! I know which one I would prefer to drink from.
If you have any top tips for keeping bird baths clean, please do send them to me and I will pass on your ideas!
Great savings on hygiene bundles
Our Hygiene Hub has everything you need to keep your feeding stations and bird baths clean. These two bundles are currently on offer:
Bird Bath Hygiene Bundle
Save £3 on this bird bath hygiene kit, which includes Ark-Klens™ disinfectant, Vetark CitroSan sanitiser and a pair of cleaning brushes.
Buy Now >>
Bird Feeder Cleaning Kit
Save £2 on this bird feeder hygiene bundle, which includes two brushes, a scraper tool and a spray bottle of 3-in-1 disinfectant, cleanser and deodoriser.
Buy Now >>
Feeding seeds and peanuts at this time of year
Our home feeders are being emptied at a pace at the moment. Our garden birds are extremely hungry and we continue to offer them a range of feeds including seed, peanuts, fat and mealworms. Offering all the food types is important to support the variety of garden bird that visit us.
Finches, for example, are predominately seed eating birds. They have short, strong and thick beaks that are designed for cracking seed shells. Finches have varying beak sizes depending on the type of seeds they eat. Larger, stronger beaks are suited for cracking hard seeds, while smaller beaks work better for softer seeds such as black sunflowers. Our seed mixes contain a variety of homegrown seeds with different levels of 'hardness' to suit every preference. Feeding the adults will really help them and the ensuing survival of their chicks.
Finches pictured (clockwise from top left): greenfinch, bullfinch, goldfinch, chaffinch.
Our garden birds are plentiful, varied and healthy. We have a few house rules to ensure they stay that way:
- We don't over-feed. Feeders must be completely empty before we refill; this encourages the birds to eat up any spilt seeds before they get a top-up!
- We space our feeders widely around the garden. This reduces the number of birds gathered around a single feeder at any time.
- We move our feeders weekly so that the grassy area under the feeder is clean.
- We don't move feeders back to 'used' areas for at least 3 weeks. This eliminates the chance of infectious organisms surviving.
- We clean all feeders weekly, and we keep spares so we have one to wash and one to hang. This lets the washed feeders dry completely before re-use.
- We only use easy-clean feeders that can be dismantled easily. This makes life so much easier!
- We stay vigilant and enjoy our birds!
If you follow our lead, you won't go far wrong.
Seed of the month
High Energy Fledgling Mix™ is our seed of the month for May. Order now and save 15% on the usual price!
Blended fresh on our farm every single day, each batch is carefully made to order for ultimate freshness, quality, and nutrition – so your garden birds get to enjoy seed at its very best.
Even better, it's a no-mess, no-grow mix so every bite gets eaten, with no waste left behind.
Stock Up & Save 15% Here >>
Nighttime visitors need nourishing
May is busy month for hedgehogs. After recovering from hibernation, they are on night-time wanders searching for a mate.
Support your local hedgehogs by supplying fresh water and nutritious food!
SPECIAL OFFER: Save 10% when you buy a 2kg bag of I Love Hedgehogs food!
Visit Our Hedgehog Hub >>
Well hopefully there is some warmer weather in store for us later on this week, which I am sure will be welcomed by most of us.
Enjoy your birds!
Best wishes,
Lesley
P.S. Don't forget to use your MAGIC10 discount code at the checkout!
