The right place for a nesting box

It is a good idea to provide the garden's birds with a nesting box! Numerous species are on the decline. All you need is a good nesting box, the right spot and you will be certain to house some broods.

A brood of tits inside a nesting box

Some sun, but not too much

The best site for a nesting box is a wall or failing that, a tree trunk. The site is even better if facing West but it is not an obligation. The nesting box needs to have a little bit of sun but not to overheat in the afternoon sunshine which could be fatal to the brood. On the other hand, it must be installed quite high, at a height of 1.80m at least and even more. The spot must be clear so that the birds living in the nesting box can detect any possible attack (cats, birds of prey and even… squirrels which sometimes raid broods!) Avoid placing the nesting box in a too easily reached site, near branches or on a ledge. Cats are really agile to get to whatever aroused their interest! Finally, do not place the nesting box on a tree-fork. The nesting box will be occupied but the brood will be killed for sure by a predator as the nesting box is too easily reached by numerous predators.

A nesting box placed in the right spot.

A classic mistake: placing the nesting box on the fork of a tree.

If your cat gets too near the nesting box, offer it a collar with a bell!

The right fastening

Hang the nesting box solidly to its support as it must withstand gusts of wind. You can also fit the nesting box with a safety chain: if it unhangs itself from its support, it will be held up by this safety device. Also the nesting box needs to be taken down for maintenance. If you fix the nesting box onto a tree trunk, use a suitable tie, like the specific ties used for staking young trees. Screwing or nailing the nesting box to the tree is a bad idea: you will not be able to remove it for cleaning and it can damage the tree, sometimes seriously.

Use a brush and rinse thoroughly.

A little maintenance

Nesting boxes must be cleaned each year. In summer (as from July); unhook the nesting boxes. They are no longer in use. Open them and remove all the materials brought in by the birds. Brush them with soapy or bleached water, insisting on the nooks. Rinse them out and let them to dry before putting them back in their place. This cleaning is really vital: it get rid of possible parasites and diseases' germs which lurk on young birds. An uncared for nesting box is always abandoned after the second year.

Repairing a nesting box

Sometimes other birds than the intended ones try to get into the nesting box, in increasing the opening hole. Rodents can also do the same as outside the egg-laying season, the nesting box can be occupied by other garden's animals like the garden dormouse. If the nesting box has been damaged, repair it for example by reinforcing the entrance hole with a metal plate.

Personalising a nesting box is a good activity loved by children.

Must I paint the nesting box?

Nothing pleases most the birds than natural wood but colour does not scare them, as long as the nesting box is rightly placed. If you want to paint your nesting box or personalise it with your children use paint or a solvent-free felt pen. Water-based tints are the most suitable paints.