Create A Cute DIY Bird Feeder By Repurposing A Common Garden Staple

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For gardeners who want to attract birds to their yard or keep those already visiting well-fed and happy, especially during the colder months, there are countless ways to repurpose things you already have on hand into quirky and cute feeders. In fact, there are numerous kitchen items you can turn into DIY bird feeders. However, Clare Hooper on Facebook had a different idea, and that was to use an old terracotta pot and turn it into an upside-down suet feeder. It's a simple idea that doesn't take a lot of time to make and requires no special skills.

All you need is a terracotta pot (a common garden staple everyone has stored in the shed), some sturdy rope, and a handy branch or twig. Of course, you might also like to make your own suet, which is a homemade treat that will have birds flocking to your yard, or you can purchase this ready-made at the pet store. As the pot will be hung upside down, this feeder is really only suitable for filling with sticky suet that you can push down firmly inside, so it doesn't immediately fall out again. This should work just fine during the colder months. Alternatively, you could easily grab one or more of those seed or suet balls, like these Wildlife Sciences melt-resistant ones, thread some wire through them, and then secure them inside your upside-down feeder.

Putting this DIY feeder together is really easy. Just grab a clean terracotta pot that has a large drainage hole at the bottom. Use a sturdy length of rope and feed it through the hole. Tie a knot to secure it in place, and then fashion the remaining length coming out the bottom of the pot into a hanging loop. Tie the other end of the rope around the middle of a thick branch or tree stem so that it hangs just below the pot when this is turned upside down. You'll want to provide some steadiness to your makeshift perch by tying another piece of rope on either end and then securing these to the hanging loop at the top.

Now all that's left to do is fill the pot with some suet and hang it outside. You can easily make your own by combining bird seed, sunflower seeds, dried sultanas or raisins, lard, and peanut butter. The latter two ingredients will hold the mixture together so that you can push it into the pot and it won't fall out. If you're having trouble keeping the mix inside the pot once you hang it up, find a pinecone that will fit inside your DIY bird feeder and paste the suet mix all over this before securing it with a piece of string or wire that you poke through the drainage hole. Finally, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the best places to put a suet feeder to keep your local bird population happy.