We have 6 bird boxes in our garden and late winter/early spring we give them a bit of maintenance, clean them out and repair them. Often, some of the bird boxes haven’t been used for nests but we do know that the birds sometime use them as a refuge when the weather is bad.

I often think that it is one of these tasks that isn’t worth the effort. After all, birds survived long before humans put up bird boxes. However, it was rewarding this year to see the bluetits inspecting the returned bird box just after putting the ladders away. In early spring birds are looking for a nesting site so my DIY was inspected closely, explored and hopefully will be used shortly.

So, in answer to the question, how long before birds go into my bird box? For us, it was less than the time to make a coffee and sit down and admire the completed job. Ok, guess we are lucky but, as they say – ‘build it and they will come’