Bird seed hulls can be a nuisance when they accumulate underneath bird feeders. The small shells and debris can blow around, creating an unsightly mess in your yard. While you want to provide food for your feathered friends, you don’t want the leftover hulls to take over your lawn or garden. With a few simple steps, you can easily remove the bird seed hulls and keep your yard looking neat.
Why Do Bird Seed Hulls Accumulate Under Feeders?
All bird seeds have an outer covering known as a hull or shell. This protects the inner seed that contains all the nutrients birds need. When birds visit feeders and eat the seeds, they crack open the shell with their beaks and consume the inner seed, then discard the outer hull. The hulls are light and small, so they can blow around or accumulate directly under the feeder where they are dropped.
Some types of seeds like millet and sunflower seeds have very hard, dense hulls that are more difficult for birds to crack. This results in more hulls dropping and piling up. Cheaper bird seed mixes also tend to have more fillers like milo and oats that have large hulls birds don’t like to eat.
The hulls gather under and around the feeder in dry, flaky layers. If the area under the feeder is not cleared, the hulls can build up over time, spreading out in a widening circle under the feeder. Wind and rain can also displace the lightweight hulls, scattering them around the yard.
Problems With Bird Seed Hulls
While bird seed hulls are a natural byproduct of feeding birds, large accumulations can cause some issues:
- They look messy and unsightly in the yard
- They can kill grass or plants by blocking sunlight and smothering leaves
- They can attract rodents who forage on the spilled bird food
- They can spread weeds through seeds sprouting in the hull debris
- They can create a slick surface when wet that is slippery underfoot
To maintain a nice looking outdoor space and keep hull waste under control, it’s a good idea to remove and dispose of the hulls regularly.
How Often To Remove Bird Seed Hulls
The frequency of removing bird seed hulls depends on how many birds visit your feeders and how much hull waste accumulates. For light to moderate bird traffic at a feeder, plan to clear hulls:
- Weekly – Clear area under and around feeder once a week.
- After refilling feeders – Each time you refill or top off the bird feeder, take a few minutes to remove old hulls from underneath.
- After wind/rain storms – Hull debris can blow and spread out after stormy weather. Check area and collect any dispersed hulls.
- As needed – Check under feeder routinely for buildup and remove as needed to keep area tidy.
For areas with heavy bird activity and lots of hull waste, you may need to clear the area under the feeder daily or every other day to prevent excessive buildup.
Tools for Removing Bird Seed Hulls
Removing bird seed hulls is fairly straightforward. The lightweight, dry hulls are easy to sweep up. Useful tools include:
- Broom & dustpan – The most basic clean up tool, a broom easily sweeps up hulls into a dustpan for disposal.
- Leaf blower – A cordless leaf blower on low setting can blow and gather hulls into a pile for quick pick up.
- Shop vac – For heavy debris, a shop vac makes fast work of sucking up hulls from the lawn or garden bed under the feeder.
- Stiff bristled broom – A broom with stiff bristles can scrub hull debris off grass or garden plants.
- Garden rake – Use a stiff rake to stir up, loosen and gather hull debris in yard.
For clearing hulls off grass, a broom is usually sufficient. For ground beds or piles of hulls against foundations or walls, use a shop vac for easy pick up. Rake or blow to gather hulls spread over a wide area into piles before collecting.
5 Steps for Removing Bird Seed Hulls
Follow these simple steps to easily keep areas under bird feeders clean and hull-free:
- Put on gloves – Wearing gardening or work gloves helps protect your hands as you handle debris.
- Clear area under feeder – Use a broom, leaf blower or shop vac to remove hull layer directly under feeder.
- Sweep surrounding area – Carefully sweep up any hulls scattered a few feet around base of feeder.
- Check for plant damage – Inspect nearby plants and grass for signs of smothering, clearing off hulls.
- Dispose of hull waste – Place all collected hulls into trash or compost bin securely to prevent spillage.
Repeat these steps as often as needed to keep the bird feeding area clean and prevent large buildups. Clearing only takes a few minutes with the right tools.
Composting Bird Seed Hulls
Once collected, the bird seed hulls need to be disposed of properly to complete the cleaning job. The hulls can make a useful addition to a compost pile or bin. The small, dry shells break down over time. Here are some tips for composting hull waste:
- Place hulls in an enclosed compost bin and mix in with other organic waste like leaves or grass clippings.
- Spread hulls in thin layers, avoiding large piles which can mat down and resist breaking down.
- Mix in nitrogen-rich green waste like fruit/vegetable scraps to help decomposition.
- Make sure the compost maintains proper moisture levels.
- Occasionally turn and stir compost pile to incorporate hulls layers.
Over several months in an active compost bin, the bird seed hulls will fully break down into nutritious compost for the garden.
Alternative Uses for Bird Seed Hulls
If you don’t want to compost the hulls, here are a couple other eco-friendly uses for the waste:
- Decorative mulch – The hulls can make an attractive natural mulch around garden beds or pathways when kept to a thin layer. Combine with leaves or pine needles.
- Craft projects – The colorful hulls can be incorporated into homemade bird feeders or natural wreaths and garlands. They make whimsical decorative elements.
- Smoking chips – Dry, hard hulls like sunflower or millet can be used like wood chips for smoking meats or other foods.
Getting creative with reusing the hull debris cuts down on waste. But be sure to limit amounts used for crafts or mulching to prevent buildup.
Preventing Messes From Bird Seed Hulls
While cleaning up hulls under feeders is necessary, you can also take some proactive steps to minimize the accumulation:
- Use bird feeders with trays or large perches to reduce spillage.
- Select higher quality bird seeds which have less waste.
- Place feeders away from plants and yards to concentrate mess in one area.
- Put feeders in wind protected locations to prevent scattering.
- Suspend or hang feeders over unplanted ground or grass.
- Add tray covers or catchers to feeders to contain the hulls.
With smart feeder placement and design, you can reduce the amount of hull clean up required. But some accumulation is inevitable, so remove regularly before it gets out of hand.
Conclusion
While bird seed hulls under feeders may seem like an unavoidable nuisance, cleaning them up is really quite simple. With common tools like brooms, rakes and vacuums, the hull debris can be swept up and removed easily and quickly. Just be consistent about clearing away the accumulation frequently. Then your yard can remain pristine, and the birds can continue to feast happily at the feeders.
