Garden inside a bird cage
 

Our new home comes with a large bird cage and has a cement paved/tiled floor. We are thinking of converting much of the space to an in-ground garden. Question for those with experience or knowledge: is that a good idea? Any issues? Bug infestations?

Yes, we know that IF we decide to plant some vegetables, we will need to pollinate the flowers ourselves manually.

We would appreciate pictures of your "indoor" garden ideas.

Thanks

I think it’s a neat idea!

I’d incorporate landscape lights (path and up-lights) into the plan. Of course drip irrigation would be needed. A seating area (or two) and a water feature would be a must for me. Perhaps a fountain or a small pond.

I wouldn’t worry about insects, the anoles will take care of those to a certain extent. You’d need to carefully select and place plants so that they wouldn’t touch the top screens on the lanai.

You would also need to replace most of the underlying soil.

My biggest concern would be drainage of rainwater. We can get over 7” of rain in an afternoon, and that’s a good storm not a hurricane.

Another question, and I am not sure I want that: I never owned a pet bird, but does anyone keep a pet bird in the large outdoor bird cage? If so how do you catch the bird when needed? I assume some parrots and parakeets would understand and come to you when called, probably seduced by something tasty.

Is there a pet bird club?:laugh:

A pool under the bird gage would be a larger return on investment.

Bringing Bugs inside a birdcage, now that's thinking outside the box! ( I believe you already found a use for your screens) Mary Jane is in the house.

Yes, I am concerned about that and I even wrote: "will that cause a bug infestation?"

I guess this idea is better for green houses, not connected to the house, but you do not need a greenhouse in Florida.

Thanks.

Friend built their birdcage 3/4 concrete 1/4 (40sf) dirt. They brought in good soil, adding small section of sod for dog. Then plants from flowers to vegetables. Some did better than others, but not as good as the plants outside.

First downfall from the experience, heavy rainstorms sometimes left the dirt too wet for most of the summer, tracking muddy footprints everywhere. They still got bugs, and multiple time fire ants.

Second downfall, when they decided to sell, the negative comments on the dirt cage, was decided factor. In the height of selling frenzy of 2020-2021, offers were $50,000 less, but never had a solid offer.

The upside some vegetables, fruits tree ok. A couple of black snakes that kept the occasional mouse at bay.

I would start with one or two raised beds. Then see what works and what brings issues. As a specialty corn grower using controlled greenhouse air, hand pollinating made it much easier to get almost 100% pollination by using bags.

I would find it quite intriguing to see what self-pollinators are available and which ones you can hand pollinate. Now I wish I had a bird cage.

Could be the start of a great new club. :BigApplause:

Um, actually there is, called, creatively enough, the Villages Pet Bird Club. They meet at Canal Street Recreation.

We decided on pots, and have 25 large ones. They can be grouped into a "garden" with the flexibility of switching them around for a new look.

Only had a (small) problem with bugs when we used soil from our composter in the pots. Now just use bagged soil, and reserve the compost for the "outside" garden.

One or both of the staged approaches mentioned above are a good idea.

Start with a raised bed (or two) and some large pots to see how the garden performs for you. You can gauge whether the sunlight is right, how much watering you'll need, evaluate the bug issues, etc.

There are very handy. Sorry! Something went wrong!
You don't have to bend over or get on your knees and they can be wheeled into or out of sunlight, etc.

P.S. Nevermind how that link text displayed. It's to Amazon with various raised bed options.

What about this?

If you have a pool in the cage, then you will need to be aggressive about cleaning up after the plants. If you are not, much of the plant waste and dirt will end up in the pool.

I have seen one bird in a bird cage. I think it’s a great idea to give them exercise space during the day.