Advice for Feeding Birds

I have never seen the birds so hungry, a mountain of sunflower seeds was moved in a day.  It's been a bad season for berries and seeds.  My mother said that in the cold winter of '63 half of all British birds died.

I am moved to act, I love to watch the birds feed.   In the snow they are all puffed up and round.

I asked some advice on how best to feed the birds in the cold weather, from my mum, lifelong member of the RSPB and sensible cove:

Blackbirds and soft bills like fruit – manky apples cut in half as some don’t seem to know how to get through the skin or you can spike them onto branches

Shelled sunflower seed for those who cannot cling like tits,  whole sunflower for the tits (I suppose they will go for the shelled ones if they have the choice)

Good quality seeds for birds (cheap ones mainly wheat which almost nobody eats)

Leftover bread (wholegrain if poss) dipped in sunflower oil (fat helps to keep warm)

Leftover culinary seeds and dried fruits

Thawed water

Dining at our table so far this winter:  crowds of chaffinches, flying visits from gangs of starlings and greenfinches (all of which we don't usually see), dear old sparrows, great and blue tits, robin, jenny wren, collared doves...