Upcycled birdfeeders. A how to guide. what will you reuse?

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1 Upcycled birdfeeders A how to guide what will you reuse?

2 Recycled bird feeder The background: Make your very own bird feeder using materials you Plastic bottles and tetrapak drinks cartons are something most of us have in our kitchens regularly. When you are finished with them don t throw them away, give them another life and reuse them as a bird feeder for your garden! Many of these everyday items make perfect bird feeders, they are waterproof, and can easily be cut into to make feeding holes or perches. Some can even be decorated to personalise your own bird feeder! Why not experiment with different designs and materials! Bird feeders can be made from different bottles, cartons, yoghurt pots or tin cans and the perches can be made from anything from pencils or wooden spoons to twigs from the garden! After they have lived their life as a bird feeder, remember you can recycle them! Keys words: Bird feeder, recycle, reuse, plastic, species, winter, supplementary feeding, Tetrapak, waterproof This recycled bird feeder is great for using up plastic bottles! Remember Plastic bottles can be recycled in your kerbside recycling service with the lids attached or in the red lidded on street bins! Tetrapak can be recycled in certain supermarket car park recycling points see our website for details!

3 Recycled bird feeder The method: Make your very own bird feeder using materials you Plastic Bottle or Tetrapak carton with cap Bamboo stick or twig about 20cm long A drawing pin or scissors for making holes String about 40cm long Top tip: Different birds eat different foods. If you want to attract certain species of bird to your garden fill your bird feeder with their favourite foods! See the RSPB website for information! Keep in mind if the bird feeder gets mouldy or dirty this can be unhealthy for the birds so try to keep it clean and then recycle it and make another one when it is done! Step 1: Wash the bottle and dry well. Try to remove the label if you can. Step 2: Use the drawing pin or scissors to make two small holes in the bottle opposite each other near the bottom. This is where the perches will be. Step 3: Push the bamboo stick or twig through the bottle and out the other side. Step 4: Next make a slightly larger hole about 4 cm above this on each side. Don t make the holes too big or the seeds will just fall out. Step 5: Make two more small holes in the neck of the bottle for the hanger. Step 6: Thread your string through one of these holes and out the other and then tie the ends together. Step 7: Remove the cap and fill the bottle full of bird food. You can use various seeds such as sunflower seeds, Niger seeds or unsalted peanuts. Step 8: Screw the cap back on and then hang your feeder from a tree or bird table in your garden! Remember to keep them restocked!

4 Recycled bird feeder The method: Make your very own bird feeder using materials you Clean used tin can keep the lid Can opener Rope or paint as decoration Rope or string as a hanger Piece of scrap metal or wood Glue preferably a glue gun Step 1: Take the tin can lid and bend it in half. 2. Next take the metal or wood for the post and glue it into the can so that there is enough room for the birds to perch on it. 3.Insert the folded lid so that it fits nicely over the metal piece you just glued in and is just inside the opening of the can. Glue this into place. 4. Glue a long piece of rope from top to bottom of the can leaving extra at the ends to use as a hanger. You can just paint the can if you don t want to use rope but you will need string or ribbon to act as a hanger. 6. Tie the two ends of rope together in a knot to act as a hanger. 7. Cut another piece of rope the exact size of the front of the can and glue it around the edge. 8. Your feeder is done! Now just fill with bird seed and hang from a hook or tree.

5 Recycled bird feeder The method: Make your very own bird feeder using materials you Plastic Bottle Scissors String Wooden spoon Bird food Top tip: Use small seeds that will trickle out of the holes and stay on the wooden spoon. Make sure your string is strong enough to take the weight of the food and the birds! Step 1: Wash the bottle and dry well. Remove the label if you can. Step 2: Cut a few small holes in the bottom of the bottle for drainage so your food doesn t go soggy. Step 3: Use the scissors to make a hole in the bottle that the wooden spoon would fit through. Add a second hole above this for a feeding hole. Step 4: On the opposite side of the bottle make a hole slightly lower down. This is where the spoon part will be. You want the wooden spoon to tilt slightly so the food trickles out onto the spoon for the birds to feed. Step 3: Push the spoon through the bottle and out the other side making sure you have room on either side for the birds to land. Step 5: Make two small holes in the neck of the bottle for the hanger. Then thread your string through one of these holes and out the other side. Step 7: Remove the cap and fill the bottle full of bird food. Then screw the cap back on and hang your feeder from a tree or bird table in your garden! Remember to keep them restocked!

6 Carton Birdfeeder! The method: Save up your fruit juice cartons and save the planet- make your very own recycled birdfeeder! Step 1: Using your pencil, draw a door about half way up on the carton. Remember it will need to be big enough for the birds to get through! Step 2: Using scissors, and with adult supervision, cut out the door. Step 3: Pierce two holes in the top of the carton and thread a loop of string through the top. Food or drinks carton Pencil/twig Bird feed/seeds Scissors String Step 4: Very carefully push your pencil from the front to the back of the carton below the door- this will be a perch for the birds! Step 5: Now you re ready hang your recycled birdfeeder in the garden! Remember to look out for special carton recycling bins at your local supermarket for all the cartons that aren t turned into birdfeeders!

7 Recycled bird feeder The method: Make your very own bird feeder using materials you Tetrapak drinks carton Extra bottle lids 2 sets of matching pairs one smaller than the other Bamboo stick Scissors String or ribbon Paint Top tip: You might need to make a few small holes in the bottom of the carton to act as drainage. Step 1: Paint your Tetrapak carton any way you like. It can be bright and colourful or painted like bird feathers to be more authentic! Step 2: Cut out a wing shape on either side of the carton leaving a hinge on the top to keep it attached. Push the wings out slightly. Step 3: Glue the two small lids into the large lids to make the eyes. Paint a black dot for the pupils. Glue the eyes onto the front of the carton. Step 4: Cut a hole in the front under the eyes for the birds to feed from. Step 5: Under this feeding hole push the bamboo skewer through to act as a perch. Step 6: Fill the carton to the feeding hole with bird food. Don t overfill or the bird food will just fall out. Step 7: Make a hole in the top of the carton and thread a piece of string or ribbon through to hang the feeder up with. Step 8: Hang your feeder from a tree or bird table. Step 9: Remember to keep refilling your bird feeder. When it gets too dirty recycle the carton.

8 Biodegradable bird feeder Make your very own bird food using food waste you Half an orange rind, coconut shell or half a tennis ball String Lard or suet A mix of food materials such as raisins, seeds, nuts, breadcrumbs, fruit, bacon rind, cheese Step 1: If using an orange rind, cut the orange in half and scoop out the flesh and eat! Step 2: Punch a hole in either side of the rind half near the top. Thread the string through the holes. Step 3: Put all your food ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Step 4: Heat the suet or lard up in a pan on the stove until it has melted. Step 5: Carefully pour the melted suet or lard into the bowl and mix it with the food materials. Make sure they all get coated in the lard. Step 6: Next take your food mix and fill your orange half. Fill it to the top and pat down. Step 7: Put the orange half in the fridge to set. You can leave it overnight but it should set after 1-2 hours. Top tip: Different birds eat different foods. Why not make different batches of your bird food using their favourite ingredients! See the RSPB website for information! Step 8: Once set you can hang your oranges from a tree in your garden and watch the birds come to feast! Step 9: Once the bird food is empty put the orange rind in your compost bin!

9 Toilet Roll Birdfeeder! Toilet roll tube Peanut butter Bird feed/seeds Tray Step 1: Coat the toilet roll tube in peanut butter so that you can t see the cardboard anymore. Step 2: Pour a thin layer of bird feed into the tray. Step 3: Place the peanut buttery toilet roll tube on its side and into the tray of seeds. Step 4: Roll the tube around in the seeds so that the bird feed becomes stuck to the peanut butter. Now pick the perfect tree for your birdfeeder and see how many birds you can attract to your garden! Simply loop the tube over a twig or small branch on your favourite tree and watch the birds enjoy the food from your special recycled birdfeeder. Remember that your toilet roll tube is made out of cardboard and can be recycled again into compost for your garden. If you have a compost bin at home make sure you put it in there when the birds have eaten all their seeds, or use your garden waste bin and the council will turn it into compost for you!

10 Recycled bird food The background: Make your very own bird food using food waste you It is really important to feed the birds during the winter months especially when there is snow on the ground. Birds can find it difficult to find food when the weather is bad so a helping hand is always welcome! Attracting birds into your garden can show you how fascinating our local wildlife can be. We often end up with food waste that we would recycle or throw away but why not use it to feed the birds. Stale foods past their best can often be used as a bird food not only during winter but all year round! Why not try making your own bird food mixes and see what birds you can attract to your garden. You can even make your own bird feeders to go with it using plastic bottles or drinks cartons! Different birds eat different things. Small seeds will attract species like house sparrows and dunnocks. Blue tits and greenfinches favour peanuts and sunflower seeds. Niger seeds are particular favourites with goldfinches. For more information on what foods to put out for the birds see the RSPB website. It is also important to know that fat from cooking is bad for birds. The problem with cooked fat from roasting tins is that the meat juices have blended with the fat and when allowed to set, this consistency makes it prone to coating birds' feathers. It is a breeding ground for bacteria, so potentially bad for birds' health. Depending on what meat is used salt levels can be very high too. Lard and suet on their own are fine as they re-solidify after warming and as they are pure fat, it is not as suitable a breeding ground for bacteria. Keys words: Bird food, recycle, reuse, species, winter, bacteria, wildlife This bird food recipe uses up everyday foods we would otherwise throw away. But remember you can recycle your food waste across the city, residents will either have a brown bin or an on street food recycling bin! See our website for details!

11 Recycled bird food The method: Make your very own bird food using food waste you Yoghurt pot (or half an orange rind, coconut shell or half a tennis ball) String Lard or suet A mix of food materials such as raisins, seeds, nuts, breadcrumbs, fruit, bacon rind, cheese Top tip: Different birds eat different foods. If you want to attract certain species of bird to your garden make your bird food using their favourite ingredients! See the RSPB website for information! Keep in mind that each container should only be used once. Once the birds have eaten all the food recycle the container! Step 1: Choose your container and then make a small hole in the bottom. Step 2: Thread the string through the yoghurt pot and tie a knot on the inside. Set aside. Step 3: Put all your food ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Step 4: Heat the suet or lard up in a pan on the stove until it has melted. Step 5: Carefully pour the melted suet or lard into the bowl and mix it with the food materials. Make sure they all get coated in the lard. Step 6: Next take your food mix and fill your container. Fill it to the top of the yoghurt pot and pat down. Step 7: Put the container in the fridge to set. You can leave it overnight but it should set after 1-2 hours. Step 8: Once set you can hang your bird food from a tree in your garden and watch the birds come to feast!

12 Remember that if you have a black box at home, you can recycle plastic bottles along with cans, aerosols and clean foil. If you don t have a black box, look out for big recycling bins with red lids. You can recycle plastic bottles, cans, aerosols and clean foil in them too! To find out where your nearest red-lidded bin is, visit out website- the address is at the bottom of this page. Food and drinks cartons, also known as beverage cartons and Tetra-Pak, are made so that food and drinks are kept as fresh as they possibly can. Although they look and feel like cardboard, they are actually made from cardboard, plastic and foil. Because they are made from a mix of materials, they are not as easily recycled and only a few special companies can recycle them. Look out for the special beverage carton recycling bins at the recycling points of most of the major supermarkets. People in Scotland throw away about 566,000 tonnes of food every year. When we throw food away it ends up in landfill which causes a lot of damage to the environment. Did you know that you can recycle food? We offer a food recycling collection service to most properties in the city. Get in touch to start recycling your food today!