Gardeners urged to place washing up bowl in gardens now
This simple action could help birds during our record breaking driest spring.
While the continued dry weather has been a boon for Brits who have soaked up the sunshine, it's causing issues for birds that visit our gardens. And now gardeners are being asked to help our feathered friends out by putting a washing up bowl outside to create a mini pond.
Scotland has officially had the sunniest spring on record with a staggering 520.5 hours of sunshine. And the unseasonal lack of rain has meant birds are struggling for water sources. But an old washing up bowl can help them out for both drinking and bathing, say the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).
Katie Nethercoat, from the RSPB's wildlife team said it will help a lot. She said: 'Lack of rain, hardened ground and rising temperatures can all bring in challenges for our birds.
'Providing fresh, clean bathing and drinking water is a simple but hugely effective way to help wildlife, as well as leaving areas of damp ground and soil.'
She said the edges of the bowl will ideally be level with the ground so a spot of digging might be required.
She told the Huffington Post: "Using an old washing-up bowl or sink can provide valuable access for wildlife. If the edges are level with the ground, more creatures can get in and out.'
If that's not possible, you can create little ramps for the birds with rocks and stones, she suggested.
Building a mini pond is fairly simple. Using your old bowl - or even a old water tank or half barrel - move it to the location you've chosen.
Any holes will need to be sealed with silicone and then put a layer of clean gravel in bowl. Avoid using soil as this could make your pond green.
Then you simply need to fill your pond. It's recommended to use rainwater wherever possible as tap water contains chemicals which aren't suitable for birds.
You can plant in the pond too. It is best to put plants in special aquatic plant pots which have mesh sides.
You'll also need to use a very low nutrient soil, mixed with grit. You can buy special aquatic soil for ponds.
Katie also suggests piling twigs, branches and leaves in a corner of the garden which helps to keep the area wet. This will attract invertebrates which birds feed on giving them a steady source of food.
'Even a mini pond in a pot will benefit wildlife,' the Royal Horticultural Society says.
Homeowners are also being asked to leave out unsweetened, stale, dry cereal for the birds instead of binning it.
As long as the cereal isn't sweetened and doesn't contain salt, sugar or artificial preservatives, it's safe. And it's another way to help the creatures out.
Earlier this year the RSPB warned gardeners to reconsider the use of bird tables in their gardens following alerts that they could be hotspots for spreading lethal diseases.
It stopped sales of flat bird feeders on its website after studies indicated they might aid in the transmission of sicknesses like finch trichomonosis, which is hitting finches hard.
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