Robins are one of the most familiar British garden birds, but they can be a little particular about where they visit and want to set up their homes. Here’s how to attract them.Angela Patrone Senior Lifestyle Reporter and Steffan Rhys Deputy Content Hub Director
10:13, 28 Sep 2025
I asked 7 gardeners how to attract robins — you need 1 food and it’s not seeds(Image: Chris McLoughlin via Getty Images)
If you’re hoping to entice birds into your garden during autumn and winter, then you’ll undoubtedly want to welcome robins as well. With their distinctive orange-red chest and compact, sturdy build, the robin ranks among Britain’s most recognisable garden birds.
However, robins can be somewhat choosy about the locations they frequent and where they establish their territories. Whilst offering mealworms and sunflower hearts represents a straightforward method to catch a robin’s eye, gardening specialists suggest that cultivating fruit trees and bushes is the superior approach. This is because such plants will supply a wealth of nourishment, reports the Express, whilst also furnishing shelter for robins.
Lucie Bradley from Easy Garden Irrigation explained: “To attract robins into your garden during autumn, the best way is to include plants that will be both a food source and a shelter, so, as food sources diminish, you are providing a safe haven full of berries and insects where robins will become established.
“This allows you to create the perfect winter scene as robins can be attracted by the traditional winter staples of holly and ivy, which combine berries, shelter, as well as attracting the insects robins like to eat.”
She noted that pyracantha similarly delivers an “abundance of juicy red or orange berries”, whilst offering robins secure, thick, spiky cover, whereas a cotoneaster would likewise supply berries rich in sugar and fat, “perfect for robins” as they accumulate energy reserves to endure the harsher months ahead. Another fantastic addition to your garden is a crabapple tree.
Pyracantha will catch a robin’s eye from across the yard(Image: Getty)
This tree provides small fruits that stay on the tree into winter, offering a reliable and easily accessible food source for robins and other wild birds.
Loren Taylor, gardening expert and owner of the Soothing Company, a garden landscape company, has a consistent goal every autumn for his garden. He aims to fill it with flashes of robin-red breast against the turning leaves.
He stated: “After nearly two decades designing landscapes, I’ve learned that robins aren’t complicated guests. Give them a steady buffet of berries plus a bit of shelter, and they’ll show up day after day, even when the mornings turn chilly.”
When it comes to which berry plant to grow, Loren recommends pyracantha for two reasons. The bright orange-red berry sprays “catch a robin’s eye from across the yard”, and the plant’s thorny branches “create a natural fortress”.
Hawthorn will attract robins to your garden(Image: Getty)
Robins feel safe darting in and out to feed, knowing neighbourhood cats will think twice before giving chase.
His other choice would be the guelder rose. Its clusters of crimson berries ripen just as insects begin to dwindle, so “robins flock to the shrub” for reliable calories.
As an added bonus, its leaves glow a deep burgundy before they drop, adding drama to borders that might otherwise look tired by October.
Petar Ivanov from Fantastic Gardeners suggested that “the most natural approach” to attract robins is to plant berry-producing shrubs such as hawthorn, holly or rowan. He explained that they offer a reliable supply of fruit, whilst leaving patches of leaf litter encourages earthworms and beetles to flourish, creating a “hunting ground they’ll revisit daily” for robins.
He emphasised that the “crucial factor” in drawing robins is “consistency”. Once a robin discovers a regular, reliable food source in your garden, it “will keep returning throughout autumn and can even continue to visit into winter”.
Use berry plants to attract robins to your garden(Image: Getty)
James Ewens, gardening and wildlife expert from Green Feathers, confirmed that berry-producing shrubs will help ensure robins keep coming back. With insects being scarce at this time of year, he pointed out that berry-bearing trees and shrubs are particularly popular with robins.
James explained: “Berries, holly and hawthorn are some fan favourites as they bear bright clusters of berries for robins to feast on. Cotoneaster shrubs and trees are very attractive to both humans and robins. They’re vibrant and festive, and the berries often last even through the coldest winter days. Planting one or two of these shrubs and trees ensures robins have a continuous food source.”
Callum Halstead, head gardener at Cambo Gardens, has revealed several of his preferred plants that “truly draw these charismatic birds”. The first being elder, which offers plentiful autumn fruit and copes brilliantly with our coastal conditions.
I asked 7 gardeners how to attract robins daily – they said you need this 1 food source(Image: Getty)
Secondly, native wildflowers are certain to draw these birds seeking sustenance into your outdoor space, whilst the remaining two options are pyracantha, which provides winter berries during times of food scarcity, and ivy that creates ideal nesting locations whilst supplying additional valuable berries.
John Candlish, head gardener at Dabton House on the Drumlanrig Castle & Country Estate, suggested cultivating fruit trees, though he maintains there’s another method gardeners can use to entice robins without planting these species. He explained, “If you don’t have fruit trees, use open-style feeding trays or lay out some fruit or native berries on the ground, as robins naturally feed on the ground, which will attract them.”
A gardening specialist from Online Turf supported John’s view, stating that you needn’t plant anything fresh to draw robins to your garden; alternatively, you can offer them fruits you already possess, including apples, pears, and plums.
Ensure these are cut into smaller portions, and you can include mealworms alongside crushed peanuts as well, to “create a food mix that no robin can resist”.
Peanuts contain high levels of fat, making them an excellent option to help robins survive winter, whilst mealworms supply them with vital protein, fat, and fibre, supporting their muscle growth and general wellbeing.
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