Edible Wildlife Ornaments

Edible ornaments for wildlife are a great way to feed the birds – and squirrels (whether you want to or not). I was browsing some sites and found these recipes for bird and squirrel-friendly ornaments at The Iowa Outdoor Unlimited Trip Blog at http://iowaoutdoorunlimited.blogspot.com/. Maybe you will have time to make some for our feathered friends this winter. Hang them high enough so my bagel-loving dog won't eat them.

Recipes:

Bagel Ornaments:

Cut a bagel in half.
Smear peanut butter on both sides.

Dip in bird seed.

Suet Ornaments:

Get suet from the butcher. Place in a pot and melt it down over the stove – the pieces of fat that don’t melt will start to fry. Strain out the chunks and allow to cool. Melt one more time and add some peanut butter and birdseed. Allow to cool, until it is soft but not hard. Press into a cookie cutter and place in a freezer then press out of the mold. It is easier if you cut a length of string and squeeze the suet in around the string then trying to add the string later – don’t tie it until you take the ornament out of the mold. Sometimes they come out without a trip to the freezer.

Bread Ornaments:

Cut shapes out of the bread with cookie cutters.

String them up

Allow to dry out.

Garland:

String popcorn, orange slices, cranberries, and apples on a string to hang on a tree.

Peanut Treats:

Get peanuts in the shell (unsalted).

Use a needle and thread to string the peanuts.

Tie a bow with raffia and hang on the tree.

Pinecones:

Take a pinecone and smear it with peanut butter.

Roll the pinecone in birdseed.

Tie with string or raffia and hang on your tree.