grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

  • Home
  • Biography
  • Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • My Thoughts on Publishing
  • SHOP!
  • Garden
  • Food
  • Crafts
  • Farm
  • Reading & Books
  • Sunday Letter

How to Make Valentine Bird Seed Feeders

February 11, 2014 By Talya Tate Boerner 21 Comments

Bird Seed Feeders

Got cabin fever? Today I’m making Valentine bird seed feeders—a winter gift to the birds. I worry about birds in winter, especially when the ground is covered in ice and snow. Teaching kids about nature and birding and caring for the creatures of our planet is an important lesson on compassion. Birds need love too. And valentines.

There was a little trial and error on my part, and yes, this project takes a bit of patience. But these heart-shaped bird seed feeders make a fun project for children of all ages (with adult assistance).

Print
How to Make Bird Seed Feeders

Yield: half dozen depending upon size of cookie cutter

Ingredients

  • 2 cups birdseed
  • 1 tablespoon bread crumbs
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon corn syrup
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch

Notes

You will also need bird-friendly twine for hanging. Cotton and/or shredded newspaper (optional) for nest building material.

3.1
https://gracegritsgarden.com/2014/02/make-valentine-bird-seed-feeders.html

 

homemade bird seed feeder

Method

Mix everything together. The little kiddos can definitely get in on this part.

Homemade Bird Seed Feeder

Spray the inside of a cookie cutter with cooking oil spray. Fill cookie cutter with birdseed mixture. Pack the seed as tightly as possible using the back of a wooden spoon. When you think it is full, add more and pack again. It’s sticky and messy (like suet you buy at the bird store). Even if you don’t have kids at home, it’s fun to get your hands dirty.

And FYI—different seed attracts different birds. Click HERE for a comprehensive list of birds and their favorite seed.

Homemade Bird Seed Feeder

Slowly, slowly, slowly remove the mixture from cookie cutter. A little may crumble away. That’s okay.

Homemade Bird Seed Feeder

Let dry on wax or parchment paper for 4-6 hours.

Mist additional cooking oil around the inside of the cookie cutter each time before refilling. Depending upon the size and thickness of your cookie cutter, this recipe makes about six feeders. You’ll want to make them as quickly as possible because once the seed begins to dry out in the bowl, it becomes difficult to work with.

For nest building…

When the hearts are dry, wrap twine around each so that the heart is nestled securely inside the string. Then add a loop at the top for hanging. I added a bit of delta cotton from our last harvest in the center. If you don’t have cotton, add a little shredded newspaper. Birds love cotton and twine for nest building.

birdseed feeder

Confession:  My first two attempts were Pinterest fails. Initially, I thought I’d poke a small hole at the top of the heart feeder and thread string for hanging. This caused the birdseed feeders to crumble. I placed the broken ones outside for the birds. They ate it immediately. (Wrapping the feeders with twine turned out to be the way to go.) 

Birdseed

The moral of this birdseed project: don’t forget to feed your birds even if you only scatter seed on the snow covered lawn.

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

[tweetthis]Don’t forget the birds in winter! @birdsunlimited #nature #howto #wildlife [/tweetthis]

Musical Pairing:

Winter Birds, Ray Lamontagne

Filed Under: Crafts, Nature & Seasons Tagged With: bird feeders, homemade birdseed, how-to winter projects

Wanna receive posts via email? Sign up here!

Comments

  1. Joy @ Yesterfood says

    February 11, 2014 at 8:22 am

    Talya, I love this so much. My little grandson and I made one of those pine cone-n-peanut butter feeders last month…now we will try this one! I love that you included nesting material. ♥ Thank you for your sweet message of feed the birds! 🙂 PINNING!

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      February 11, 2014 at 7:46 pm

      Thank you Joy! I hope you and your grandson enjoy making these:)

      Reply
  2. Patti says

    February 11, 2014 at 8:48 am

    This is so sweet and something the kiddos would love as well (to help with…not to eat!).

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      February 11, 2014 at 7:45 pm

      Yes Patti. Plus a great reminder for them to take care of the birds in winter.

      Reply
  3. Sarah says

    February 11, 2014 at 9:09 am

    I never knew that birds like cotton for nest building! That’s an ingenius way to help them out twice in one bird feeder (food and home-building essentials). Brilliant!

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      February 11, 2014 at 7:44 pm

      Thanks Sarah! I met a lady who grows a single stalk of cotton in her Fayetteville, Arkansas yard just so the birds can use the cotton for their nests:)

      Reply
  4. Michelle says

    February 11, 2014 at 11:25 am

    Very cool idea!! I will have to make one now!

    Reply
  5. Kim says

    February 11, 2014 at 6:08 pm

    Going right now to the kitchen to make this. AWESOME!!!

    Reply
    • Kim says

      February 11, 2014 at 6:35 pm

      MADE!!! Will hang tomorrow. Love it! Thanks for recipe…my birds love you!

      Reply
      • Talya Tate Boerner says

        February 11, 2014 at 7:43 pm

        Yay Kim! I can’t wait to see it:))

        Reply
  6. Dorothy Johnson says

    February 12, 2014 at 10:17 am

    Great project! I must try it. Staying in during this hard winter has brought out the crafter in me, too. I’ve been making a Valentine box (remember those?) and started on an altered book that your instructions on the book inspired.

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      February 12, 2014 at 10:57 am

      So funny you mention Valentine Boxes. I’m blogging about that tomorrow:))

      Reply
  7. Skye says

    February 14, 2014 at 8:48 am

    You are so sweet to keep the birds in mind!

    Reply
  8. Crystal Green says

    February 16, 2014 at 10:57 am

    This looks like a great project to do with the kids and the birds would love it too. We still have plenty of birds flying around our neck of the woods. I just love watching birds. It’s so soothing and peaceful.

    Reply
  9. AngieB says

    February 20, 2014 at 2:33 am

    I love feeding the birds especially in the winter. We have had so much ice here in N.E. AR that I had to buy bulk. These little heart shaped ones are very cute and I will try this. I always sing “Feed the Birds” from the Mary Poppins movie every time I feed the birds.

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      February 20, 2014 at 10:30 am

      Thanks Angie! I hope your birds enjoy this. Love that song:)

      Reply
  10. maya says

    October 11, 2017 at 1:29 am

    Hello,
    I hope you and your grandson enjoy making these:)

    Reply
  11. Gertie says

    January 11, 2018 at 4:22 pm

    Now, I know what to do with the cotton from pill bottles saved in a drawe

    Reply
  12. jack says

    January 12, 2020 at 9:37 am

    I just wanted to reach out and thank the author Samantha for some amazing suggestions! There are not a whole lot of articles online on how to DIY your own roof, so this post as a general guideline is gold. I also really liked how you actually put the words “do” and “don’t” in the article like the title says.Tree Removal Service

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Treasure Box Tuesday 7 - Memories By The Mile says:
    February 18, 2014 at 6:10 am

    […]  How to Make Valentine Bird Seed Ornaments by Grace, Grits, and Gardening […]

    Reply
  2. Lavender Blueberry Granola - grace grits and gardening says:
    April 9, 2014 at 7:24 am

    […] be thinking wait, this looks strangely like that concoction she made a few months ago for Valentine birdseed feeders… I agree. It does. And although both are edible, this is much better tasting (for […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


Hi! I'm Talya Tate Boerner. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (Now Available!)

Never miss a blog post! Subscribe via email:

Prior Posts

Tags

A to Z April Blog Challenge Autumn BAT Book Reviews childhood Christmas creative writing prompt Dallas Desserts Eureka Springs Fall Fayetteville Food Gracie Lee Halloween Hemingway-Pfeiffer home humor Johnson Family Keiser Lake Norfork Lucy and Annabelle Mississippi County Mississippi Delta moving Munger Place Nana nature Northeast Arkansas Northwest Arkansas Osceola poem Reading Schnauzer simple living simple things spring spring gardening Summer sunday letter Talya Tate Boerner novel The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee Thomas Tate Winter Wordless Wednesday

Books by Talya Boerner / Purchase in Grace Grits SHOP

Talya Tate Boerner books
Gene, Everywhere

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

THANKS FOR READING!

All content and photos Copyright Grace, Grits and Gardening © 2023 · Web Hosting By StrataByte