I just heard from my friend Sally from Queensland Australia. She is temporarily in Italy with her husband and family during her hubbies temporary work transfer. Her Mum, friends and home are all okay after the horrendous flooding in her area of Australia. Prayers and good vibes are needed for that country.
I'm about to fill my suet log that Andy and I made this past summer. It's sure a big hit with the Downy woodpeckers and the cute little Juncos and a starling or two. I'm wishing for Tufted Titmice, Nuthatches and Red-Bellied woodpeckers. Maybe they'll come someday. I used my Kitchen Aid mixer attachment a while back and ground up some suet from the butcher counter. I baggied up and froze half a dozen bags while I had the mess going and it's really handy to fill the holes in the suet log. The birds seem to love it!!
Mr. Downy Woodpecker
Mrs. Downy Woodpecker
Dark-eyed Junco
Here's what the feeder looks like. Very easy to make!
Recipe for a Suet Log:
1 5" X 18" Log
1 brace or drill with a long 1" bit on it
1 Sturdy man to do the drilling (can be replaced by an adventurous woman)
Give the drill to the sturdy man...have him drill holes in various places around the sides of the log. Drill a hole in the top and bottom. The top hole is to place suet in for birds who can't hang on the sides and the bottom hole is to allow the pipe to go into the flange far enough to make it sturdy.
2 flanges from the hardware store that are about 4" across and have a 1" threaded hole
1 - 1" X 4' piece of threaded pipe (threaded on both ends)
1 piece of plywood about 2' X 2'
Attach one flange to the bottom of the log and one to the center of the plywood. Screw the pipe into the flanges. Fill the holes in the log with ground suet. Place in a bird-safe place and just wait...you'll soon be seeing some of God's most wonderful birds!
You are sooo creative!
ReplyDeleteMy neighbor has something like that, but she bought it. I think it's made to put peanuts in for the squirrels. She makes her own suet. Your's is better because it's home-made. That lard must have been a mess to work with! It's so wonderful to watch all the birds.
ReplyDeleteI saw one of these online somewhere and between my brain, Andy's brawn, and conferring with my "Hardware Queen" sister Marsha, we figured out how to make it. We made Marsha one too. :)
ReplyDeleteCheryl, the lard wasn't too bad. I froze it and used it partially thawed. That kept the schmutz to a minimal level. Now I use rubber gloves to poke it in the holes and I have the ground up stuff frozen too. It only needs to thaw a little bit to be malleable and not quite so messy.