Hanging Wild Bird Treat - A different kind of seed bead

You can save money by creating your own hanging treats, instead of purchasing preformed bells or biscuits.

Conversely, you can spend a ton of money spoiling your wild animal friends.  You can attract a lot of wild bird company by hanging out a customized treat.  They are shamelessly friendly to those who feed them, much like those people who only come to your parties when there is free food & booze.

Basically, you get a bunch of your animals' favorite treats and stick them together onto a rope, to form a bead-like hanging treat.

What you need:

Rope
Wild Bird Food (Seeds, Nuts, Corn, Whatever)
Flour
Water
Plastic Wrap!
Committed counter Space (it takes a day or two for the treats to dry completely)
 

I made a big mix of food, including small seeds for the nuthatches, finches, and chickadees on my property, combined with corn and peanuts for the chipmunks and squirrels, and I also added large nuts for the Steller's jays, woodpeckers, and our lone raven. The jays or the woodpeckers tear apart the treats and the smaller birds and mammals pick up the bits they like from the ground beneath. The raven hides behind the bushes and only comes out for his favorite tidbits.

Note:  I used a soft rope for these treats, which worked fine at first, but the squirrels have started chewing it up.  I will be making future treats with a tougher rope base. 

Step 1 Cut the rope and tie knots

Figure out where you're going to hang up the treat and make the rope as long as you like, so it will fit in the space.

Tie knots toward one end of the rope.  I made groups of two and three, but you could just make one if you wanted to.

Leave enough rope at the other end, so you can tie it securely, otherwise the jays or the squirrels will take it home with them.

I made a bunch of these at once, so I could have them on hand for a couple of months.  You certainly don't need to make so many at one time.  I suggest starting with one as a test, so you can modify the flour mixture if it comes out too hard or soft.  (See the next step.)

After you get the rope cut, lay out a bunch of plastic wrap, to cover the size of the work area that you will need.  The seeds stick to everything, so plastic wrap is an absolute necessity.

Comments

[Tunkis]

Really great my grandma loved it! Il post a picture of the birds soon:) 5 stars

[ChrysN]

Nice, looks like your customers approve.