Feeding Suet to Garden Birds in Summer

When the warmer weather arrives, many people wonder whether they should still feed suet to garden birds. The answer is yes — suet can still be a fantastic, high-energy food source for wild birds during the summer months, especially when it is fed sensibly alongside fresh water and a variety of other foods.

Suet is naturally high in fat, which makes it a valuable energy source for garden birds. While many of us think of suet as a winter food, birds can still benefit from it throughout the year. During spring and summer, birds are often very busy nesting, feeding their young, moulting, defending territories, and searching for natural food. All of this takes a lot of energy.

Offering suet in your garden can give birds an easy, reliable source of nutrition when they need a quick energy boost.

Why Suet Can Soften in Warm Weather

Because suet contains a high level of fat, it naturally becomes softer when temperatures rise. This is completely normal and does not mean there is anything wrong with the product.

During warmer periods, suet balls will likely break up during transit. This can mean that some of the fat balls arrive broken or crumbled in the box. Although this can be frustrating, it is also a sign of a high-quality suet product with a good fat content.

Harder, lower-fat products are less likely to soften, but they may not offer the same high-energy benefits for birds.

Broken Suet Is Still Perfectly Usable

If some of your suet balls arrive broken, please don’t throw the pieces away. Broken or crumbled suet is still just as useful for garden birds and can be fed in several easy ways.

You can scatter the broken suet on the ground for ground-feeding birds such as blackbirds, robins, dunnocks and thrushes. You can also add the pieces to a bird table or feeding tray, where smaller birds can easily peck at them.

Crumbled suet can also be mixed with seed, mealworms or other bird food to create an energy-rich mix for your garden visitors.

If you would prefer to use the suet in a traditional suet ball feeder, you can gently shape the softened pieces back into a ball and place them in the fridge or freezer to firm up before use.

The Benefits of Feeding Suet in Summer

Feeding suet in summer can help support birds during some of their busiest months. Parent birds are often make repeated trips to find food for themselves and their young, so having a reliable food source nearby can be a big help.

Suet can also be useful during dry spells, when natural food such as worms and insects may become harder for birds to find. It provides concentrated energy in a convenient form, helping birds maintain their strength during hot and active periods.

Many popular garden birds enjoy suet, including robins, blue tits, great tits, long-tailed tits, starlings, sparrows, blackbirds, and woodpeckers.

Feeding Suet Safely in Warm Weather

In summer, it is best to place suet feeders in a shaded area where possible. This helps slow down softening and keeps the food fresher for longer.

Only put out what the birds are likely to eat within a reasonable time, especially during very hot weather. Clean feeders and bird tables regularly to help keep feeding areas hygienic.

Fresh water is especially important during warm weather, so try to keep a shallow dish or bird bath topped up for birds and other wildlife.

Important Warm Weather Breakage Notice

Throughout the year, it is common for up to 15% of the fat balls to be broken at the bottom of the box during transit. This is due to the nature of the product and the handling that can occur during delivery.

During warmer periods, please allow for a higher level of breakage, with up to 25–30% of the fat balls potentially arriving damaged.

Unfortunately, we cannot accept returns or issue refunds for broken fat balls within these expected levels, as this cannot be avoided in warmer months.

Final Thoughts

Suet remains a valuable food for garden birds throughout the summer, providing a rich source of energy during a busy and demanding time of year. While warmer weather can cause suet to soften and break more easily, this is a natural result of its high fat content and does not affect its usefulness for birds.

By feeding suet carefully, keeping water available, and using any broken pieces creatively, you can continue to support the birds in your garden all summer long.