How to Hang a Bluebird House

Bluebirds are colorful creatures. Watching these friendly birds from your window can bring many hours of enjoyment. Bluebirds like a home with a roof and walls, therefore if you want to attract bluebirds, you can simply build one. But where and how do you hang a bluebird house?

Things You'll Need

• Bluebird house
• Roofing nail
• Hammer

Instructions

1. Plan to hang your bluebird house at the proper time of the year. You can use Valentine's Day in February as a good deadline for hanging the birdhouse. If you have a roost house from a previous year, this is also a good time to clean house. Hanging the birdhouse later than February 14 does not allow the birds enough time to get used to the new home and set up a family. Usually, the female moves in and waits to attract a male. The birdhouse must be set up before mating season, which is the beginning of March.

2. Plan the location of your bluebird house. Some of the best places to hang a bluebird house are along fence posts or on large older trees. Another idea is to have multiple houses lined in a row or grouped in an area. If you hang several bluebird houses, put them at least ten feet apart because the birds are private creatures. Hang two houses back to back to attract sparrows, which also use this type of birdhouse and act as protectors and good neighbors to the bluebirds. If possible, use open areas away from thicker wooded areas to keep the birds from being prey to other birds or squirrels.

3. Face the birdhouse toward short grass as this is part of the bluebird diet. Use an area where the grass grows to about 2" in height. Face the birdhouses in an eastern direction to give the birds warmth when it gets colder.

4. Using a roofing nail and a hammer, hang the bluebird house at eye level. The nail should be placed at the top of the house with the back flush with the post or tree. This allows you to check on the house weekly and clean the inside periodically.

5. Clear out any brush or debris around the bluebird house. This will eliminate predators from climbing up to the birdhouse.