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Been trying to attract these beautiful birds scince we moved here five years ago and I saw one in the garden. They ignored niger seed  and the seed heads of lavender and verbena I left uncut. I went away on holiday for a month and left the birdfeeders with my neighbour and filled them with sunflower chips instead of sunflower hearts and now have a flock of about ten constantly at the feeders and devouring seed heads, such a wonderful sight it really cheered me up!

You are lucky.  I have recently put out niger seed but still no Goldfinches.  There was a wonderful photo on here a while back of someone with a huge number.  I will get some sunflower chips and try those.  Thanks.

Quote from: tulippa on January 27, 2006, 10:59:34
  There was a wonderful photo on here a while back of someone with a huge number. 

That was my photo Tulippa, posted 30th December. 

I had 23 at one time yesterday.  Some were on the niger feeders, a couple on the tray that has mixed sunflower seeds and the rest were on the grass at the bottom picking up dropped seeds. It seems that for every niger seed that a finch pulls out of the feeder a dozen or so fall to the ground.  I have just refilled the feeders so if they all come back today I will try to get some more pics.

Good luck tullipa, hope you get them. It only takes one to find what you have put out for them, then they spread the word around.

Fleur and Pauline. I am so jealous!!!! I am going away to sulk ;D Will just have to keep trying.

Lorna, have you got a niger feeder now?  It probably took about a week for them to find mine initially.

i'm jealous too

Pauline No I haven't got a niger feeder yet. After I got the normal feeders somebody did mention niger feeders so that has got to be next on list (I didn't even know there is such a thing as niger seed!!) I have got a lot to learn. ;D

23  :o   ... now that is just plain greedy ..  ;D  so so lucky, what a sight!  ;D

what is their preferred habitat?

I have goldfinches regular, but 23..... heck, thats a lot.  Quite a charm of them eh?

:D :D :D :D :D


p.s.  I have had 27 Red Legged partridges tho......

Quote from: flowerlady on January 27, 2006, 22:38:52
23  :o   ... now that is just plain greedy ..  ;D  so so lucky, what a sight!  ;D

what is their preferred habitat?

This web page says a bit more about them, including their habitat. 

http://noahsarkgardens.co.uk/Wildlife/Birds/Goldfinch.htm

When my husband took our dog for a walk the other day, he went a different route for a change and came across what he described as "hundreds of goldfinches" on a big pile of
sunflower seeds that were near a farm. 

I am going to do the Bird Watch today and hope they are still around when I run the form off.

28 goldfinches today.  See thread about Bird Watch.

Pauline. OK I have been out this morning (flipping freezing and a HEAVY frost) and bought a niger feeder and niger seed. So will stand at kitchen window and wait ;D
I have now got mixed wild bird seed. black sunflower seed. fatballs. peanuts and now niger. I mean if that doesn't say WELCOME what does?
Will be lovely if the (any!!) finches decide to visit my garden during the next few weeks. I hope the starlings who are always squabbling don't turn any away.
Thanks for putting that link up....noahsarkgardens. found interesting information on there... Lorna.

Well done Lorna, it may take a week or two but I am sure you will be rewarded.  Don't stand too near the window though because they are a bit timid and won't come down if they can see you.  I know what will happen, I bet they come before you are up in the morning and the only evidence will be the seed disappearing!  lol   ;D ;D

I hope you get some soon Lorna.

 I put niger seed out last summer, no joy. I know they aren't far away, I see them at work 5 mins away, so why are they boycotting my garden?  :(

How much cover (bushes etc.) is there round your garden? Things like that can be critical.

They can be unpredictable. I had a small flock of a dozen or more calling every day a couple of years ago. Have changed nothing, but the goldfinches have vanished - greenfinches are feasting on the niger seed instead.....

Rosa I don't mind which sort of finches I get on my niger feeder as long as I get finches ;D I will be very patient.

Try growing teasels, they love the seeds from them.

Robert, two sides of my (small) garden have buddlea, spirea, cotoneaster and a couple of conifers. I have a wildish area behind the pond which I leave more or less alone as we have a lot of frogs. We do have a cat but I put the feeders on tall poles so he cant get at them, but I wasn't sure if they should be out in the open to make birds feel safer, or near a bush / tree for cover? Fleur, thankyou, shall try teazels. Lorna, me too, I still live in hope  ;D Thanks all of you for your help.

I had 4 goldfinches today, first of the winter season, they were feeding on the lavender seed heads