Want to make a quick yet very cheap suet block or balls for wild birds in your garden; no trouble as its possible in no time at all. You are looking for one part fat, to two parts dried ingredients for a good setting consistency. It may cost. Carefully make a small hole in the bottom of a yoghurt pot. Use a fat that is solid when unrefridgerated to avoid it melting and making a mess. Get some garden string and thread it through the hole. Coconut Shells – I really like to use half coconut shells with a hole drilled through the top. Roll the cone in even more seed to coat the outside. 1. Remember, the general rule if one part fat to two parts dried ingredients, but this can be tweaked depending on the fat you use. Cooked Meat Fats – It used to be common to save leftover meat fat from cooking, such dripping as from roast beef and pork. Its incredibly hot at this time so five minutes away from the pan will give it enough time to reduce the heat. Here are some tips to help. The benefit of using coconut shells for homemade fat balls is that they are sturdy and strong, they can be reused and they look attractive. Uncooked oats are fine to use. Bird seed; Raisins; Peanuts; Grated cheese; Suet or lard; A mixing bowl; Scissors; String; Step-by-step guide Make your bird mix. Suet is a great food to offer birds in the fall and winter when they need more calories to maintain their body heat and energy levels. Its a messy job as you work with fat but its also satisfying as you watch the birds take to your suet bird feeder in the block or fall ball feeder variety. I recommend this suet over any other one. If you don’t want to render suet, you can buy ready-made suet from many pet stores. These small shapes are great for adding to a platform feeder or ground feeding area, or they can be used to fill a suet cage or similar wire or mesh feeder so that no seed will be wasted. Stir into the rest of the dry ingredients until they’re all thoroughly combined. Don’t worry, we hate spam! Stir until completely combined. Mix your bird seed and lard together in a large bowl. on How to Make Homemade Fat Balls for Birds. The method of making homemade fat balls is a simple one. Before you know it, birds will be flocking from miles around to feast in your garden. • Hard fats like lard or suet, at room temperature • Handful of bird seed • Handful of unsalted peanuts • Grated cheese or raisins • Dry leftovers like oats or bread • Old and clean recyclable yoghurt pots or coconut shells for a plastic-free alternative • String • Small stick, roughly 7-12cm long This will make … By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails by Let’s Grow Wild. Learn how your comment data is processed. That is if the ingredients used has an expiry date that will take you beyond this date. I'm Georgina, blogger and author. Homemade Wild Bird Suet. All while only use one suet block at a time in the suet cake feeder. The hole will allow you to tie the ornament onto the tree. https://www.theresourcefulmama.com/the-best-recipe-for-bird-seed-ornaments Allow the lard to warm up to room temperature, but don't melt it. Dried Fruit – optional, but most sorts of dried fruits can be added to make an interesting meal. Combine the shortening and nut butter in a separate bowl and melt. Want to make a quick yet very cheap suet block or balls for wild birds in your garden; no trouble as its possible in no time at all. Avoid using turkey fat, which doesn’t set like suet and lard, and can coat birds’ feathers, preventing them from being able to fly. Turn pine cones into seed balls, repurpose old juice cartons or make your own squirrel baffle. Fold the 24" length of yarn or string in half and push the folded end through the hole in the bottom of the pot, pulling it through until about a 4" loop is sticking out of the bottom of the pot. Read more about it here. Here’s how to do it. Just mix with melted lard or suet and set in the fridge overnight. Just add your mixture and let it set in the fridge, then just tie it up on a tree branch. It can also spread disease. Mould with your hands – you can also just make the mixture into ball shapes using your hands. To do that simply bring 250g of bird seeds mixed in with 250g of dry oats into the bowl. So as a rule of thumb, it would be 250g of lard, plus 500g of dry mixture - with any yummy treats included. Bread – bread has hardly any nutritional benefits for birds, despite being something that people have thrown into their garden for years. Lining the yogurt pot with cling film first makes it easier to remove, and your fat balls are more likely to stay intact! Step 6. However, its at this time you'll need to know what you wish to make out of them. Remove from fridge to then create those all important fat balls. If you want to add mealworms, peanuts or fruits for example; it will be part of the dry mix ingredients, so the extra mix will need to be made up in the lard measurement, whether you increase or reduce the overall content. NOTE: Some bird seed can be substituted with mealworms, fruit or crushed up peanuts, that is if you remember to maintain the one-part fat, two-part dry mix rule. Live Coco supply a range of plastic-free, eco-friendly products. You can even customize the mixture to attract specific species of birds. Its only when the tray is removed from the fridge after one hour you can carve out what could be up to six suet blocks. Wild Bird Seed – you can buy this from most garden centres, supermarkets or online. You just melt the fat in a pan over a low heat, or in a microwave, and add the dried ingredients. While there are many commercial suet blocks, cakes, and plugs available, making your own suet bird food is easy and affordable. 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