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and stand it on the patio instead.I remember the Big Freeze of 1963 very well - enjoying deep snow as a young boy - and do recall finding dead pigeons in our garden that must have frozen to death! Quite how any birds survive outside during such cold weather

With so many people reporting sightings of unusual birds in their gardens - and observing some pretty odd behaviour - I'm struggling to entice anything other than pigeons to my plot. I don't know if I should even take part in this year's RSPB Big

the wiser.I only get pigeons regularly visiting my garden. Last winter I made efforts to entice smaller, hungrier birds, and managed to attract a desperate pair of wagtails, a blackbird, a robin and a blue tit. They disappeared as soon as the ice thawed

I'm just back from a weekend visiting an old friend in Banwell, near Weston-Super-Mare. Always envious of his rambling house and large walled garden, we got to talking over garden wildlife and the troubles of traipsing fox dung through the kitchen

the discomfort).But if I'm still cold beneath so many layers, I shudder to think how the poor birds must be faring. Their tiny, almost flesh-free legs must be frozen. I do what I can for them, and my bird table is currently laden with large quantities of crushed

's Big Garden Birdwatch – from a safe distance. It might be quite dull, as most other birds have now found pastures new, but if anything dares encroach on Our Sid's territory, there will be quite a show.The RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2011 takes place

and Their Haunts by the Rev. C.A. Johns, was published in 1862 by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, on the back of his success with Flowers of the Field (1851). Both books were in print for over a century, and it's easy to see why.To start, Johns

down into 10 categories based on the best wildlife-friendly garden features, the audit invites you to rate your garden's value to wildlife. All you need to do is tick the description that best matches your garden and tot up the results at the end

It's easy to consider bees and birds when gardening – we see plenty of them if we grow the right plants – but what about bats? Emerging from their roosts at dusk and returning by dawn, they can often go unnoticed.My partner is a huge fan of bats

Last winter, when I went to great trouble to feed the birds in my garden, my offerings were largely ignored. This winter, I'm trying again, leaving seeds, chopped apples and suet pellets for ground-feeding birds such as robins, blackbirds