Half of UK gardeners provide supplementary food to keep 196 million birds alive over winter. This generosity has steadily grown over the last 40 years and has had a huge impact on the number and species visiting our gardens. So with alarming world-wide declines in animal populations, our garden visitors are bucking the trend.

We all see this happening in our own gardens. And the kids get involved. My sister gave her granddaughters a nesting box and was later rewarded when little Natalie excitedly told her that birds had settled in.

The British Trust for Ornithology [BTO] demonstrated these dramatic changes in a survey conducted between 1973 and 2012. The data from the Garden Bird Feeding Survey was supplied by BTO members evenly spread throughout the UK.

Many new bird species were attracted to feeders. In 1973, 50% of birds using this supplementary food were robins and blackbirds, but by 2010, the top 50% comprised 6 species.

The wider menu at our bird tables has undoubtedly widened its appeal. Traditional farmland goldfinches were unimpressed by the kitchen scraps and offcuts offered in 1973, so turned up in only 8% of the study’s gardens. But it was a different story in the 1990’s when we began supplying sunflower and nyger seed. By 2012, they were spotted in 70% of the gardens.

When deciding which of the many kinds of feed to buy, I like to include the environmental impact of my purchases. Clearly energy costs are important. Although millet is cheaply available and sunflower seeds are largely grown in mainland Europe, nyger seed comes from Ethiopia or India and it requires energy-intensive heat treatment.

On the other hand, home-produced fare entailing free recycling and zero miles transportation has proved exceedingly popular with my garden birds. During the cold winter months, producing fatcakes is a full-time occupation.

I render down fatty offcuts and dripping, with medium oatmeal and any crumbs from the toaster added. Once the cooling liquid is poured into a large yoghurt or cream pot, a rough twig is inserted. When set the fat cake is removed from its mould ready to be hung from a sheltered branch on a climbing rose or small tree.

Interestingly, fatcakes not only provide vital food for small birds, they let corvids demonstrate their inventiveness. I’ve seen rooks sit on a firm branch supporting a fatcake. A bird methodically lifts up the string with its beak till the fatcake’s close enough for feeding. To foil them, I use whippy branches that are just firm enough to hold the food, but too wobbly for the big ‘un.

A sheltered spot is always important. The open bird tables of the 1970’s were fine for ground feeding robins and thrushes, but not for small tits. They prefer tube feeders in safe places, where they can peacefully nibble away without falling victim to an equally hungry sparrow hawk.

Finches also appreciated the perches that were added to feeders and I’ve devised a DIY version by attaching large plant saucers to mesh feeders.

Bird feeders are endlessly fascinating to watch and are a brilliant way of introducing children like Natalie to living creatures in the garden.

This invaluable service carries important responsibilities. Good hygiene is essential as disease can easily be transmitted at these busy restaurants. Feeders should be taken down and thoroughly cleaned. I also like to move them to a fresh site to prevent contaminating the surrounding ground where other birds will feed.

These diners come to rely on us, so they would starve and almost certainly die if their food supply is suddenly stopped or greatly reduced.

Plant of the week

Cotoneaster frigidus ‘Cornubia’. A large, semi-evergreen shrub bearing generous clusters of bright red berries, perfect for birds. Its dense growth also provides excellent shelter.