New Weekend Wildlife Tip: Gardeners Urged to Add This Simple 85p Item to Bird Tables

As winter settles in and natural food supplies grow scarce, wildlife organisations are encouraging gardeners to place a simple 85p pantry item on their bird tables this weekend—unsalted porridge oats.
This inexpensive and easily available food can make a meaningful difference for many garden birds struggling through the colder months.

Why Porridge Oats Help Birds in Winter

During winter, small birds like robins, blackbirds, tits, and finches need extra calories to maintain their body heat. While seeds and berries are still important, adding unsalted porridge oats offers:

• High-energy nutrition that helps birds stay warm
• A quick food source for species that burn energy rapidly
• A safe alternative to bread, which offers little nutritional value
• An affordable option for anyone wanting to support local wildlife

Wildlife experts emphasize that the oats must be plain and unsalted. Flavoured or sweetened varieties can be harmful to birds.

A Small Action With a Big Impact

Feeding birds during winter doesn’t need to be expensive or complicated. A single handful of oats:

• Attracts a wider variety of garden birds
• Supports species during freezing nights
• Encourages birds to return regularly to safe garden habitats
• Helps families, children, and nature lovers enjoy bird-watching up close

Even in urban areas, small feeding actions can strengthen local biodiversity.

How to Offer Oats Safely

For best results, experts recommend:

• Scatter a small amount on a bird table or flat surface
• Keep the area clean and dry to avoid mould
• Provide fresh water in a shallow dish
• Pair oats with seeds, fruit scraps, and suet for a balanced winter menu

Adding natural shelters—like shrubs or evergreen branches—helps birds feed safely away from predators.

A Weekend Invitation to Gardeners Everywhere

With cold weather approaching, now is the perfect time to support the wildlife in your own backyard. This simple, 85p food item could help keep many birds healthy throughout the toughest months of the year—and your garden will reward you with beautiful, lively activity.

Reference Sources

1. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) – Guidance on feeding birds in winter and safe foods for garden birds, including the recommendation that plain, unsalted porridge oats can be offered.
• RSPB – What to Feed Garden Birds (Wildlife Advice).
2. British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) – Winter bird feeding advice, nutritional needs of small birds, and suggested foods to support them in cold weather.
• BTO – Garden Bird Feeding Guidelines.
3. Wildlife Trusts UK – Public resources on helping birds during winter, safe foods for birds, and how simple household foods can supplement natural diets.
• The Wildlife Trusts – Helping Garden Birds in Winter.
4. National Audubon Society (USA) – General bird-feeding recommendations, including high-energy foods for small bird species during cold months.
• Audubon – Bird Feeding Basics.
5. Independent wildlife experts and ornithology educators who advise that porridge oats, when unsalted and not soaked, are a safe supplementary food for many small bird species.