Archive for January, 2009
Children can be nature lovers even at a very young age. If their parents exhibit great, obvious and constant concern for the environment, youngsters will soon be following their ways. One auspicious approach to get kids interested in nature would be to let them roam in the garden. Explore your patch with your child while pointing out and naming the various creatures and plants you see. Teach him or her dos and don’ts when dealing with living things. You can tell your child for example that it is not okay to pick flowers but it is good to pull out the weeds.
Little children love little birds. To attract robins, sparrows, wrens and other wild birds to your garden or backyard, make sure you have a regular supply of wild bird seed. Kids will enjoy feeding these tiny winged creatures with bird food that is a combination of sunflowers, canary seed, oatmeal, wheat, and small mixed seeds.
Gardens and backyards filled with foliage and happy, chirping birds are a sight to behold. They look so natural and full of life, you can’t help but wish there would be more of these places in the city.
If your garden is already teeming with greenery, you need to work on attracting the birds. A good first step would be to acquire a bird house. Decorative bird houses are wonderfully appealing outdoor structures that add instant color and vibrancy to a garden. They come in many sizes and shapes and can be hung or positioned atop a sturdy ledge or pole. Most are designed to look like miniature houses but a few come in rare, eye-catching styles such as the ones that resemble acorns and a clump of grapes! Bird houses are commonly made of wood, metal or polyresin. When you buy one, don’t forget the bird seed to keep your feathered friends contented, and coming back for more.
Bats are not only very interesting, but are the primary predator of night-flying insects of which mosquitoes are one. A single bat can eat between 600 & 1,000 insects or mosquitoes in just one hour. So how do you get these wonderful mammals to start eating your insects? Try putting up a Bat House.
Bats are one of the most misunderstood animals, 70% of bats feed on insects and almost all bats in the United States do. They are actually very clean animals and are not blind. Bats will not interfere with bird feeding or disturb your pets. Out of the 45 species found in the US 6 of them are on the endangered species list.
By putting up a Bat House not only are you giving them a home (possibly to an endangered species). You can also expect the benefits of having fewer mosquitoes, yard and garden pest. You’ll be surprised at how much you will enjoy learning about bats with your friends and family.
If you want to bring North America’s largest swallow and only Martin on this continent to be a guest at your house try putting up a Purple Martin House. However make sure when putting up your Martin House it is in the center of the most open place available, at least 30 feet from human housing and 40 feet minimum from any trees.
East of the Rockies, Purple Martins are completely dependent on humans for their houses. For more than 100 years Martins have nested almost exclusively in Purple Martin Houses put up by us (humans). Purple Martins are unusual due to the fact that several pairs will nest in a Martin House with multiple compartments. Once you have attracted the subadults to your house they will return year after year to you. They enjoy the company of humans and will reward you with their beautiful songs.Purple Martins are unique that they get their food (insects) and water while in flight. They skim the surface of the water and scoop it up with their lower bill.