Often hailed as the nation’s favourite friendly garden bird, robins are a delightfully merry sight to behold in the garden. They are in fact present in almost 85% of our gardens all year round but we tend to notice them most in the winter, as they are one of the few birds that still sing in the colder months. Both males and females are incredibly easy to identify as they both boast a bright red breast. Currently, the males will be marking out their territories for the coming breeding season and it is a little known fact that males are fiercely territorial! If you wish to attract this charming bird to your garden this winter then take a look at the list below, we’ve compiled some simple steps that you can carry out to encourage robins to visit.

Suet Cakes Whilst robins do feed on a wide variety of insects and other invertebrates around the garden, they particularly enjoy suet cakes. These are excellent source of energy during the winter months for robins. Crumble the suet cake on a bird table or on a ground tray. Avoid using bird feeders as robins are too large to land on or cling to them. Fruit Halve fruits such as apples, pears and plums and leave them on the bird table or the ground so the birds can easily consume them. Peanuts Peanuts are rich in fat and are therefore perfect for this time of the year. Crushed or grated nuts are known to attract robins whilst dry roasted or salted peanuts should most definitely be avoided. Peanuts should be bought from a reputable dealer, as they can be high in a natural toxin that is extremely harmful to birds. Spindle By planting some spindle you are providing robins with natural food sources from both the berries and the insects and invertebrates that are attracted to spindle. Mealworms These treats should be given robins live or soaked to give them the moisture that they need. Dead or discoloured ones should not be used as they can cause many health problems. They can be fed to robins throughout the year and it has been know that they will accept mealworms by hand! Nest box If you want to encourage a robin to breed in your garden then we recommend putting up an open-fronted nest box. It should be placed in a hidden location in a climber or other such vegetation and to prevent cats climbing in use chicken wire. In a mild winter robins begin their courtship in January but normally their breeding season takes place in March.