You can get hanging feeders with a clear plastic dome on them and it can be adjusted to keep bigger birds out!!

Our bird table has plastic netting tacked across it - small birds get through easily; pigeons can't. :-)

Bulba and I only use hanging feeders, mesh ones for peanuts, plastic tubes for sunflower hearts and a sort of cylindrical cage to hold the suet balls. Putting bird food on the ground is not a good idea as not only does it attract pigeons and the like but vermin too.

I agree hanging feeders are best, the little birds seem to quickly learn fronm the tits how to hang on......fascinating to watch.......but bigger birds are just too heavy
We have a fatblock feeder as well as the balls, these are more popular with all the birds, even the woodpecker than the seed and peanuts

Our woodpecker loves the peanuts Pamg

Thanks for all the replies. I do only use hanging feeders, but the pigeons flock to where the seeds fall and we get dozens of them congregating. For now I've given up feeding the birds, it's a shame. Worth keeping the peace with the neighbour though! :)

Using hanging feeders wouldn't necessarily stop pigeons coming to your garden though - I use hanging feeders and while it does stop the pigeons eating the food from that source, it doesn't stop them waiting underneath the feeders for other birds to drop bits!

Oops, my comment crossed with yours! Sounds like we have a similar problem ;)

I have been putting some of my hanging feeders in shrubs recently and helps a bit.

Nang are you using those seed mixes? They do tend to spill everywhere but peanuts don't and though the sunflower hearts do get dropped the small birds get them very rapidly.

You can buy hanging feeders with saucer like bases - this would perhaps stop so much falling to the ground.

You can Scottish, and they work!

Our first one was a plastic pot saucer screwed underneath, very good but the plastic finally perrished but you can now buy them either attached or separatly but make sure they are the same brand....

I have tried saucers and the crows soon learned to use them as a platform, the domes did the trick and keep the large birds of the feeder,but the pigeons and the collared doves will feed from the ground,

Many thanks for all your helpful answers. Moon-grower, I will try peanuts. I also like your idea, Jent, of the limited-access birdtable. Maybe I can get my hubby to make one some weekend....after he's finished the raised beds and the den for our grandson. (No, I'm not going to take up carpentry. Got enough to do with trying to grow things as a very late-in-life learner!):)