Pinecone Feeder

7 Easy Steps in Building a Bird Feeder Out of Pine Cones

Bird feeders are important when feeding backyard birds. Use of a bird feeder contributes greatly in promoting good nutrition of bird population in your area, plus it attracts beautiful flock of birds to your own garden or backyard. What’s interesting here is that birds usually return year after year provided that you continuously supply them a food source. Well, there’s no need to spend on expensive bird feeders just to keep your bird saloon up and running. Learn how to build a bird feeder out of pine cones!

If you have kids, bird feeders made of pine cones hanging outside your window will let your little ones get a closer view of your pretty feathered friends. Building a bird feeder out of pine cones is inexpensive and you can use things that are often on hand.

Needed Materials: Pine cones (large and open), peanut butter, bird seed, corn meal, ribbon (2 feet per pine cone), wax paper, spoon, and shallow dishes/bowls.

1. Gather pine cones or buy them from your local store. Choose large pine cones that have been opened so peanut butter can easily stick into the crevices.
2. Choose the right birdseed. Take note that there are various kinds of birdseed and each one invites specific types of birds.
3. Tie a ribbon to the top of the pine cone. The length of the ribbon or yarn is preferably two feet but you can make it longer if you want to.
4. Mix the cornmeal and peanut butter well together in a shallow dish/bowl. You may use this proportion: 1 cup of peanut butter and 1/3 cup of corn meal for every three pine cones. With a spoon, spread the peanut butter over the pine cone. Coat the entire pine cone particularly the crevices.
5. Place the birdseed in another bowl or shallow dish then roll the pine cone in the birdseed. Press each pine cone firmly to embed those seeds until the entire pine cone is thoroughly coated.
6. Set the finished pine cones on wax paper.
7. Feed the birds! Hang the bird feeders from a tree in your back yard or near the fences. Birds usually love to perch and settle on the fence so it’s a good spot to attract them. You can also hang the bird feeders near the window so your kids can get a closer sight of the birds.

Additional Tips: Since the procedure can be a bit messy, cover the table with newspaper before getting started. As substitute to peanut butter, you can use sunflower seed butter or soy butter. When choosing pine cones, it’s best to select those with rounded scales since some pine cones are quite sharp.