Join in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch with British Garden Centres

The RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is just around the corner (24th-26th January 2025)! Join the nation in this fantastic

family activity by spending an hour observing the feathered friends in your garden. Not only is it a delightful way to connect with nature, but your data helps scientists understand and protect bird populations.

Your local British garden Centres will have all you need to make the most of your birdwatching experience, from bird feeders and seeds and the team have put together this guide to help you spot more avian visitors!

How to attract more birds to your garden

Want to increase your chances of spotting a variety of birds? British Garden Centres has everything you need to create a bird-friendly haven.

• Bird-friendly plants: Our stores are brimming with bird-attracting plants, and we recommend planting berries, seeds, and nectar-rich flowers which are a feast for birds all year round. Crab apples, berry bushes, and fruit trees provide food and shelter from predators and the unpredictable UK weather. Plants such as holly, hawthorn, and rowan offer delicious berries or attract insect snacks, meaning birds will come flocking to the garden for a tasty treat.
• Feeders for your outdoor space: At this time of year, when the weather is cold and food is scarcer, birds’ diets will need supplementing, and we stock a wide range of feeders for seeds, suet, and nectar. Whatever the size of your garden, invest in seed feeders, perfect for small birds like tits and sparrows, and come in various styles from ones you can hang from a balcony or tree to stakes that have the full works for your lawn We also have mealworms and peanut feeders cater to multiple birds, while fat ball feeders provide essential energy, especially during winter.
• Perfect homes: Provide safe havens with our selection of birdhouses and nest boxes. It’s important to choose the right size hole for different species: small for tits, larger for starlings. Open-fronted boxes are ideal for robins and song thrushes. Garden birds need sheltered places to roost to conserve energy and stay warm and they can also be used for early nesting by some bird species like blue tits and great tits.
• Bird baths and bowls: Birds need water year-round and the UK winter sometimes sees natural water sources like ponds and streams freezing, making it difficult for birds to find fresh water for drinking and bathing. Choose from shallow dishes, bowls, or elevated birdbaths to help them remove dirt and aid digestion of food.

Amy Stubbs, Project & Development Manager at British Garden Centres said: Our knowledgeable and friendly staff can offer expert advice on bird feeding, including choosing the right feeders and keeping them clean, as well as advice on bird-friendly gardening like avoiding harmful pesticides, providing clean water, and creating a diverse garden that birds will want to visit again and again.”

British Garden Centres (BGC) is the UK’s largest family-owned garden centre group with 68 centres around the country. The group is owned and led by The Stubbs family, who also own and operate Woodthorpe Leisure Park in Lincolnshire.

BGC was launched in 1987 with the opening of Woodthorpe Garden Centre by brothers Charles and Robert Stubbs. Since 2018 it has expanded rapidly with the acquisition of 50 garden centres allowing it to grow from its heartland to the business it is now with 68 garden centres spread from Carmarthen to Ramsgate, Wimborne to East Durham.

The group has a team of 2,700 colleagues working across the garden centres, restaurants, growing nurseries, distribution centres, Woodthorpe Leisure Park, and Woody’s Restaurant & Bar