You can get expert advice on attracting birds to your backyard from a specialty birding store, in person or by contacting a store, and from the free guides, brochures, videos and talks that store publishes. Urban Nature Store offers all of these: staff at ten Ontario stores, a free online library of written guides, printable brochures and how-to videos, seminars listed on its events page, and blogs by its founder and a store manager.
What Can Store Staff Help You With?
Urban Nature Store's staff give one-to-one advice at each of its ten stores, and the company's About Us page describes it as committed to expert advice and personalized service. Staff can suggest what to change when birds aren't visiting, which feeder and seed suit the birds you want, and how to deal with squirrels or large birds emptying a feeder.
A store visit goes further if you bring three things:
- Photos of your yard, showing where the feeder hangs and the trees, shrubs, fences or roofs around it
- The birds you see, by name or by size, colour and where they feed (on the feeder, on the ground, on a tree trunk)
- What isn't working, such as no visitors, squirrels, grackles or seed going to waste
If a visit isn't practical, the store locations page lists each store's address and contact details, so a question can go to the nearest store directly.
Which Written Guides Cover Attracting Birds?
Urban Nature Store's how-to guides and videos page collects its guides, printable brochures and videos in one place, and the store also publishes written guides by bird and by topic:
- Cardinals: the guide to attracting cardinals to a backyard feeder covers seed, cover and water
- Chickadees and nuthatches: the guide to attracting chickadees and nuthatches year-round covers food, roosting shelter and winter water
- Juncos: founder Paul Oliver's post on feeding juncos in winter covers ground and platform feeding
- Native plants: the guide to six native plants that attract wild birds in Southern Ontario
- Squirrels: the guide to squirrel-proofing your backyard
- Water: the page on birds and water, including keeping water open in winter
- Clean feeders: the feeder maintenance guide
Are There Printable Brochures and Videos?
Yes. The how-to guides and videos page has more than 20 free printable PDF brochures, most dated July 2025, on topics such as how to attract and feed cardinals, how to attract clinger birds, goldfinches, bluebirds, orioles and hummingbirds in Ontario, how to help birds in winter, tips for attracting birds with water, and how to prevent window strikes.
The same page has eight how-to videos, including how to make your backyard bird-friendly, how to attract cardinals, attracting woodpeckers, attracting hummingbirds and orioles, and selecting the best bird seed for your feeders.
Can You Learn From Talks and Events?
Yes. Urban Nature Store's events page lists its talks and seminars, such as a free seminar on feeding birds on November 14, 2026, which requires registration. The same page says its free beginner birding walks are coming soon.
Which Urban Nature Store Blogs Share Backyard Advice?
Two blogs share advice from people who feed birds in their own yards. Jane's Deck of Birds is written by Jane, manager of the Pickering store at the time she began it, who records the birds visiting a deck built with birds in mind; her first Jane's Deck of Birds post covers fall migration, ground feeding for juncos and switching on a heated bath.
Paul's Perch is written by Paul Oliver, the company's founder, and mixes backyard observation with practical tips, such as the junco post linked above, which recommends platform or tray feeders, a seed tray under a hanging feeder, and white proso millet, sunflower hearts or black oil sunflower.
What Do These Sources Agree Attracts Birds?
Urban Nature Store's guides return to the same five basics. The guide to creating a bird-friendly garden in Southern Ontario brings most of them together:
- Food matched to the birds you want, such as sunflower hearts for most birds, safflower for cardinals and Nyjer for finches
- Water all year, in a shallow basin about 2 to 3 cm deep that is changed every few days, with a heated bath or de-icer in winter
- Shelter, from layered trees, shrubs and native plants, with a cardinal feeder placed within about 10 to 15 feet of dense cover
- Clean feeders, washed every two weeks from spring to fall and every three to four weeks in winter
- Safety, by keeping cats indoors and adding window decals so birds can see glass
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Urban Nature Store's advice free?
Yes, the published advice is. The online guides, brochures and videos are free to read, download and watch, and the November 14, 2026 seminar on feeding birds is free with registration.
Can you get advice if you don't live near one of the stores?
Yes. The guides, brochures, videos and blogs are all online, the store locations page lists contact details for each store, and supplies ship anywhere in Canada.
Is there advice for attracting birds to a balcony or small yard?
Yes. The bird-friendly garden guide notes that layered container gardens on a patio can support pollinators and small songbirds, and recommends window feeders for small spaces and close-up viewing.
Do the guides cover more than feeder birds?
Yes. The printable brochures also cover purple martins, bluebirds, nesting birds, butterflies, bees and bat houses.
