Build a New Birdhouse

In February, spring seems a long time away, but now is a great time to build a new birdhouse for the season ahead! Why now? Well, there are a few kinds of birds who seek shelter in hollow trees and birdhouses during the long winter nights. But the main reason is that some birds begin scouting for nest sites surprisingly early in the year.

First of all, you have to decide what kind of bird you want to make a house for. Different kinds of birds need different sized houses. Size differences in birdhouses include: the size of the hole and how high it is above the floor of the house, and how large the floor of the house is.

Birdhouses are easy to make and you can make a birdhouse out of most anything, milk cartons, gourds, boxes, but wood is the most common material used to make birdhouses. Wood is easy to work with and it makes a house which protects birds from the heat of summer and the cold of winter.

There are a number of websites that have information on building birdhouses. http://tedswoodworking plans.com for over 16,000 plans and http://www.MyShedPlans.com  offers 100’s of plans for not only sheds, but includes plans for birdhouses. Once the birdhouse is made, the job isn't finished. You have to put it up in a spot where it will be used. This means knowing how high to hang the house and in what kind of area.

The Baltimore Bird Club has information about birdhouses as part of its Backyard Birds page. The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology's Birdhouse Network has information on birdhouse sizes, birds that use birdhouses and a project where you can build a birdhouse
 and send information about who uses it to a research project.

 I love Birds, and I do everything I can to draw them to my yard. I have ponds, flowers, bushes andbirdhouses. I have been busy building a few new birdhouses this winter and I have posted some of my favorites.

If you don't have woodworking skills or don't have the time Plow and Heart has a great selection of Birdhouses

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