FEED THE BIRDS
I wrote the title for this blog and all I could hear in my head was the old bird lady from Mary Poppins, singing ‘feed the birds, tupence a bag!’, so ‘Feed the Birds’ it is! I mean why complicate it, it does what it says on the tin!!! This super easy hack might cost you slightly more than ‘tupence’, I’m guessing so but my knowledge of old money is basically nil, but nevertheless, it costs a very small amount and hey, you can sing along for free!
So, I love birds, I’m a self confessed bit of a bird geek actually, of which I hold my dad solely responsible, and I love watching them flit around, getting about their busy lives, particularly in my garden. This time of year, obviously, everything is very scarce, so especially around now, I like to prepare my super easy DIY bird feeders to give them a helping hand to gather up plentiful food & help keep them going throughout the colder months. This is so quick and easy, you’ll need only 4 items, it’s sustainable and is a great thing to do with the kids, getting them interested in nature & the outdoors.
To make my DIY bird feeders, you will need :
Toilet rolls
Compostable garden twine
Peanut butter (I use one where the sole ingredient is peanuts to keep it as natural as possible)
Seeds (Either buy a bag of bird seed or you could crush up your own mix of seeds such as pumpkin & sunflower seeds)
How to make your bird feeders :
Thread a length of twine through the cardboard toilet roll. Make the twine as long as you need to hang on a tree or bush
Using a knife or spoon (obviously for kids I’d suggest a spoon), coat the entire roll in your peanut butter, all the way around
Pour out your seed on to a flat plate and then dunk your peanut butter covered roll into the seed, coating the whole roll.
Once the whole thing is coated in seeds, hold both ends of twine and head to wherever you plan on putting your feeders. I would suggest hanging them in a tree ideally, on a branch where birds can perch and nibble at the feeder, rather than stand on the feeder itself.
Simply tie the twine to your chosen spot and watch as the birds notice your yummy feeder. Once they know it’s there, they’ll keep coming back for more, they know where the good stuff is!!!
I will often give them a helping hand and give the feeders a turn when I can see that one side has been eaten, to make it easier to get to.
Once they’ve devoured your birdy treat, simply cut your feeder down and pop into compost or your recycling.
I hope you enjoy this super easy tip and it brings lots of bird activity to your garden.
Please share this idea with anyone that you think will find it useful and be sure to connect with me over on my social media @mysanctuaryno8 .
Zara xxx