Have a flying start to the year with Carmarthen Garden Centre and the Big Garden Birdwatch

The RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch – the world’s biggest wildlife survey – returns on January 27th – 29th and Carmarthen Garden Centre is encouraging its customers to get their gardens ready for a weekend of observing our favourite feathered friends.

Research by the RSPB has shown that 8 million birds have disappeared from UK skies in the last 50 years, making this annual survey an important event to protect our garden birds for generations to come. All you need to do is set aside an hour to relax in your garden, balcony or park and record the birds that come and go.

The Birdwatch is a great family activity to get involved in and get children engaged with nature and the world around them. With the cold, winter weather we are experiencing, birds will be visiting our gardens seeking food and shelter, so it is important to put food and water out to keep them thriving and healthy. Our friendly team has put together some tips to take care of our garden birds during the cold snap and to make them regular visitors for the Birdwatch and beyond:

The most important thing we can do to help care for and feed our garden birds is to supplement their diet over winter with a bird seed mix which includes essential fats, nutrients, and protein. As well as seed, high-energy suet treats are an important source – why not have a go making your own with lard, bird seed and dried currants to hang in your garden?

Water is an essential source for birds over winter, especially when there are frosts, and their supply may be frozen. A bird bath or dish with sloped sides is ideal to drink and bathe in. You can prevent the water from freezing by a simple addition of a ping pong ball floating on the surface. 

Introducing a bird box to your garden will make a significant difference and protect from both harsh weather and predators. Providing warmth and a place to nest will also encourage garden birds to hatch and raise their young, bringing a family to your garden to enjoy. 

If you want to increase the number of feathered friends in your view, in years to come, then the store, which is part of the family-run British Garden Centres group has a comprehensive range of bird care products to choose from – ranging from bird feeders, and nest boxes to high-energy, nutritious and tasty bird foods. Sunflower hearts, Nyjer seed, and suet treats which will draw different avian visitors to your chosen outdoor space. If the weather, or time, is preventing you from getting to a centre then their website, britishgardencentres.com, has a wide round of birdcare products available for national delivery.

Paul Williams, Wildlife Category Manager at British Garden Centres said:  Our store team is on hand to help and advise people who would like to take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch this year. It is great to take time out to watch and reconnect with birds and submit your sightings to help the RSPB gain some insights into how our birds are doing in our gardens and the environment.”