Bluebirds Add Pleasant Element To Your Home

Make your yard a haven for Eastern Bluebirds. Do this by building houses for them to nest in and planting the kinds of foods bluebirds like to eat.

Eastern bluebirds are much less aggressive than other birds. Starlings and sparrows sometimes take over natural spaces like hollow trees bluebirds normally would nest in. Fortunately, bluebirds will live in nest boxes you build for them. These boxes can be built so that larger birds can't use them.

Mount nest boxes on fence posts, private utility poles, tree trunks or metal poles. Be sure to attach the boxes so they can be easily inverted and cleaned. Nest boxes mounted on slick, metal poles prevent predators like cats, raccoons and snakes from climbing up and preying on a new family of bluebirds.

Bluebirds usually start moving into Alabama by the end of February. Be sure to have your nest boxes up by then.

Bluebirds generally rely on a diet of insects, but they will also eat berries and fruits. To attract more bluebirds into your yard, plant blackberry bushes, cherry trees or dogwood trees. Bluebirds are also attracted to honeysuckle vines and oak trees.

For more information on attracting bluebirds and a diagram for building nest boxes, see your local county Extension agent.