Tweeters & Obolers,
Since a posting to OBOL several years ago reminded one of us that
sparrows were called rice birds by our ancestors, we turned to using some of
our delicious brown rice for bird feeding on the ground rather than the
White Proso Millet. We tried the long-grained brown rice (cheaper) but it
was not taken as readily as the short-grained varieties. Those sparrows are
real gourmands!
We feed on the concrete slab of the patio, but we also do it under shrubs
where we do not spread herbicies, slug bait, fertilizers or other chemicals.
We like the slab, 'cause we can wash it down from time to time if it has
too many droppings accumulate between the heavy rain storms. The birds like
to be fed under the rhododendrons, which requires raking out the fallen
leaves to give them a decent chance to find most of the grains. Feeding
under the shrubs is the preferred location of the sparrows, as they have
escape cover from raptors. This is important as when the noisy Evening
Grosbeaks are at the black-oil sunflower feeders, they seem to call in the
raptors from far and wide.
Here we regularly have Spotted Towhees, Dark-eyed Juncos, Golden-crowned
Sparrows, Fox Sparrows, and both Steller's and Western Scrub Jays.
Locally, I find the brown rice at the Vancouver Oriental Market at a very
good price. Elsewhere it is priced at a few bucks for for 10 kilo bag.
Price runs from about 45 cents to 65 cents a pound. Don't know why the
local bird shops haven't caught on to this. Perhaps their profits would
plummet if they offered it as an alternative to the Millet, and ended up
competing with the prices at the oriental markets. Well, maybe not. How
many folks spread their millet on the ground?
May you have happy sparrows at home with lots of chickweed in your fallow
garden spot!
**** ************ ****
John Allinger
Hockinson, Clark County, Washington
-- (Southwest Washington)
Elevation: 500 feet / 160 meters
Latitude: _45_45_N
Longitude: _122_30_W
< nhojregnilla at hotmail.com >