Seed Cornbread

• Get a package of cornbread mix.
• Prepare it as directed on the package except add an extra egg (egg shells crumbled into the mixture also.)
• Add 1 c. bird seed.
• If the mixture is too dry, add a little more water.
• Bake as directed on package. Cool.
• Cut into serving size pieces. Freeze in small freezer bags until needed. Defrost and crumble into pieces onto a platform feeder and watch your birds devour it!

Pinecone Treat

4 1/2 cups rendered suet
1 cup dried and crumbled whole wheat bread
1/2 cup shelled sunflower seeds 
1/4 cup millet
1/4 cup raisins or chopped dried apples

1. Melt suet in a saucepan over low heat.
2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Allow the suet to cool until slightly thickened, then stir it into the mixture in the bowl. Mix thoroughly.
4. Stuff the mixture in between the "petals" of a pinecone. Hang onto an tree and watch your birds devour it!
Contributed by Peggy Brownell

Hummingbird Nectar

Here is my recipe for homemade hummer nectar:

• Do not use honey or red dye!
• Use a ratio of 4 parts boiling water to 1 part sugar. Cool before filling your feeder. Store any unused syrup in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Always clean your feeder thoroughly before adding fresh nectar.

Gourmet Bird Seed Goodies

2 cups bread crumbs
1/4 cup Cornmeal
1/2 cup flour (use whole wheat if possible)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1 cup unsalted nuts
4-5 chopped apples
1 cup raisins
1 8 oz. jar chunky peanut butter
1 cup bird seed
1 c. suet

Mix ingredients well. If necessary you can add additional suet or even bacon drippings if it is too crumbly. Shape into balls. Freeze. You can place these in an mesh bag (perhaps your oranges or onions came in one?) and hang it out for the birds to enjoy.

Contributed by Nancy Manfeld

Gaye's Concoction

The Oregon Juncos love it as do the magpies I placed it so the Little birds get a chance first and they have been working at it for a long time...loving it too.

I just take a bunch of Peanut Butter
About seven cups of popcorn (no salt or butter)
Blanched peanuts, Craisens, raisins, blueberries
Egg shells
Cracked corn
Black Oil Sunflower Seed

Mix all together and put in huge mesh bag ...hang in the tree

Contributed by Gaye, British Columbia

Connie's Suet Pizza

I use bacon drippings, meat drippings, {just store them in old tin cans and freeze until ready to use!} To this I add peanut butter, egg shells (washed), figs or dates or raisins, seeds and apple or other fruit pieces all chopped finely. I also add flour, bread crumbs or oatmeal to make it thick. I put it on a greased flat cookie sheet, freeze and cut with a pizza cutter. They love it.

Contributed by Connie, Northern NY

 

Favorite Nesting Materials of Wild Birds

A very labor-intensive activity for birds is building nests. They must first select a nesting site, find all the materials they need, carry them back to the nesting site, and then construct it. All of this is extra activity that must be done in-between their normal activities of find food and water. Give the birds in your area a helping hand by providing a stash of nesting materials from which they can choose.

Place the nesting materials in piles on the ground if they won't blow away. Otherwise, put them in suet cages or in string bags so the birds can easily get to the nesting materials.

Here's some things you can put out:

• Thin twigs
• Dog hair (I put out the hair from my dog after she is groomed)
• Human hair (put out the hair you pull out of your brush)
• Thin strips of cloth, about an 1 wide and 6 inches long
• Feathers
• Long dried grasses
• Yarn, thread or string cut into 4 inch lengths
• Pieces of cotton
• Long wilted leaves from daffodils, tulips or iris
• Fuzzy lint from your dryer
• Strips of cellophane or cut up plastic sacks
• Spanish moss
• Pine needles
• Strips of fabric softener sheets

As well as using the above materials, the birds may also use butterfly wings, flower petals, spider webs, snake skins, horse hair, other found materials, even some of their own feathers to make the nest or to line it.

Some birds use mud to construct their nests. Keep a muddy puddle in your garden available for their use.

May you always hear the whisper of wings...

Easy Birdhouses for Children to Make

Get an empty paper half gallon milk carton. Open up the top of the carton and wash and rinse it thoroughly. Let it dry.

Re-close the milk carton and staple it shut.

Get a roll of masking tape. Tear off 1-2" pieces of the tape and cover the entire milk carton. Overlap the pieces so that none of the carton shows.

Get brown shoe polish and a paper towel or rag. Rub the polish over all of the tape to make it look like brown bark. Let dry thoroughly.

Decide what type of bird you want to use the birdhouse. Look at the birdhouse specs page, and determine how large a hole to cut as well as how far from the floor the hole should be. Cut the entrance hole in the birdhouse.

Using a pencil, make several holes in the bottom of the carton for any rain to drain out. Also make several holes in the top of the carton to let heat and condensation escape.

Make a hole through the top of the house near the staples. Put a short piece of wire (perhaps from a clothes hanger?) through the hole to make a loop. Hang the birdhouse on a shepherd's hook (like what you use for birdfeeders) or on a tree branch.

Backyard birds won't know the difference between a fancy, store-bought bird feeder and one that's homemade, so save your pennies and make one out of an empty milk carton. Cut openings on opposite sides of a clean carton and coat with nontoxic paint. Glue Popsicle stick shingles onto the roof. For a perch, poke holes below the openings and slip a dowel through the holes. Fill the bottom of the feeder with birdseed mix. (You can make your own mix by combining a variety of nuts and seeds, such as sunflower seeds, millet, thistle seeds and yellow corn.) Then hang the feeder with wire in a spot that's easy to view but far enough away from fences or posts to thwart predators.

All the Specs for Building Birdhouses

Various species of birds prefer birdhouses of certain sizes. Of course, you will want to make the entrance hole large enough for the type of bird you wish to nest in it. The hole needs to be ONLY that size since larger holes invite predators (birds, squirrels, etc.) to invade the box, either killing the chicks or taking over the box and evicting the previous residents.

Here's a handy table to use when building birdhouses. Double check the bird house plans you are using to make sure all measurements are in order. Then settle back and enjoy birdwatching in your backyard.