These Bird Food Recipes will Attract Wild Birds and Save You Money

You can use a project like this to teach them about what birds eat. You can have a lot of fun when making your bird food by using seasonal molds or cookie cutters to shape your food.

Maybe you are out of bird food and your bird feeders are empty and you don't have enough time to pack up the kids and head off to the store. There are many common ingredients, which you probably have around the kitchen, that you can put together to make delicious treats for your feathered friends.

You can follow one of my recipes or just have some fun by mixing several ingredients together and see what happens.

A lot of our readers have sent in their favorites! (Scroll down below) You can find projects from simple suet bird food to how to make abird seed wreath.

Raisins or Currants
Dates
Shelled peanuts
Apples
Oranges
Birdseed mix
Black oil sunflower seeds
Molds to shape your creations
String or yarn
Lard, shortening or rendered suet
Crunchy peanut butter
Molasses
Oatmeal
Stale bread, breadcrumbs or crackers
Cornmeal or cornbread mix
Cream of wheat
Graham crackers
Flour (whole wheat flour preferred)

Two bird food recipes to start with:

If you are going to use an oriole feeder, consider making your own homemade Oriole bird food.

Homemade Oriole Bird Food Recipe

1 part sugar/6 parts water

Bring the water to a boil and then add the sugar. Boil until the sugar has dissolved. 1 part sugar to 6 parts water means that if you boil 2 cups of water you will need 1/3 cup of sugar.

Let the mixture cool before filling your feeder. Store any excess food in your refrigerator until ready to use. There is no need to add food coloring.

Learnmore about attracting orioles here.

September Harvest

This is another homemade wild bird food recipe that I know you will enjoy. September means apples. There arealso many other fruits available. Many migratory birds that eat fruit will be tempted to linger at your bird feeders if you offer the following mix. Use a platform style feeder when offering this wild bird food mix.

2 cups of dried, chopped apples (driedapples will not get moldy as fast)
2 cups of raisins
2 cups of chopped nuts (almonds, walnuts orany nuts you have available)
1 cup of chopped prunes
1 cup of dried melon or squash seeds

Simply mix the ingredients together in a large bowl or bucket. Start by adding small amounts to your feeder and store the rest in a paper bag in a cool and dry location. Now your homemade wild bird food is ready to serve.

Our Readers Wild Bird Food Recipes

Just scroll down and you can view several of our readers' recipes for wild bird food recipes.

Do you have one you'd like to share? What kind of birds does your recipe attract? Got a picture of them feeding in your feeder? It's simple to upload a photo!

We'd love to feature it for our readers. Just fill out the form below!

Do you have a wild bird food recipe that you want to share?

If you have a wild bird food recipe that works well for you why not share it? Backyard birders are always looking for new and economical bird foods to attract wild birds to their feeders. We would love to hear from you!

The Name of Your Recipe

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What Other Visitors Have Contributed

Click below to see recipes from other visitors to this page...

DRY CAT FOOD FOR BIRDS?
I hope this is not ultimately bad for wild birds but for the last ten + years I've been feeding wild birds with fairly inexpensive generic dry cat food ...

Judith's Autumn Dough ball treats
Ingredients:
Plain flour
dried fruit-raisins- prunes -apricots or similar,
windfall apples chopped into small pieces,
grated suet,
vegetable oil

Put ...

Branch Dough
-1 part peanut butter
-1 part vegetable shortening
-2 1/2 parts white flour

Mix the peanut butter and shortening in a bowl. (Optional: add raisins,...

Bird Watchers Delight Not rated yet
I have used this recipe many times and it works.
What you will need:
clean and empty egg carton(s)
shortening
chunky peanut butter
bird ...

log feeder suet recipe Not rated yet
1/2 cup chunky peanutbutter
small handfull oatmeal
small handfull rice crispies
little cornmeal
mixed birdseed

mix together and put in log feeder ...

Honey Bagels Not rated yet
Ingredients:
Bagel
Honey
Granola/Raisins

First, make sure your bagel is uncooked
Second, take your honey and smear it on your bagel
Third, sprinkle ...

Birdy Heaven ( for domestic birds too) Not rated yet
ingredients:
peanut paste
and bird seed

Method:
put the peanut paste on a hook or samoething that dangles. Simply roll the peanut paste in the bird ...

Bird food Recipe for Jays Not rated yet
1 part peanut butter
2 part bird seed of your choice

Mix in bread pan and put in the freezer. Wait for 2 hours. Slice then put in bird cake container....

recap 1 Not rated yet
You will need; flour and butter

Mix the flour and butter together and put it out for the birds to eat :)

Berry Oat Suet Not rated yet
1 package dried craisins
1 package dried apples
2 cups cheerios
2 crisco shortening bars
2 packs instant oatmeal

Using food processor mix fruits,...

bacon fat ,seeds, nuts and fruit Not rated yet
Use old bacon grease..let harden in freezer...then take out and place any grains, nuts, berries, apples
seeds, old crackers or bread and form to the desired ...

Leftover Baked Oatmeal Scramble

by Mendy(Kentucky)

Yummy Baked Oatmeal for People:
1/2 Stick butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp. salt
5 cups oatmeal
3 cups water or milk
Mix well. Bake 325 for 20 minutes.

For the birds:
Use leftover oatmeal and scramble in skillet with:
chopped apple or other dried fruit
Leftover chopped bacon.
Refrigerate. Sprinkle on platform feeder.

Breakfast of Champions

by Chery Aschenbrenner(Laona, WI 54541)

left over bacon grease cooled when cool addchunky peanut butter/stir. Add raisins, sunflower seeds, special K cereal. Let sit then freeze in square container suet feeder size.

an idea bird combo-mixby kevin swenson(columbus,ohio)

A combination of oats,cut prunes,raisins,honey,peanut butter,syrup(optional),granola,and a mix of crushed nuts.

Leftover Baked Oatmeal Scramble
Ingredients
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup raisins
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup meat grease
1/2 cup peanut butter

Mix dry ingredients. Melt grease and peanut butter in microwave. Add to dry ingredients. Mix well. Freeze in ice cubes trays until firm.

Peanut Butter Pine Cone

Attach a string to a pine cone (tie it on)
spread peanut butter over the pine cone
then roll the peanut butter covered pine cone in bird seed.

Hang in a tree and watch the birds come for a meal!

Log Feeder Bird Treat
When using a log feeder, why not try this neat treat that birds love, consisting of:

· 5 parts oatmeal
· 1 part corn syrup
· 1 part peanut butter
· 1 part bacon fat of suet
· 1 part varied seeds and nuts i.e. black sunflower seeds, peanuts, chopped walnuts, or pine seeds and millet will work as well.

Combine in a bowl and once your done fill the mixture into your log feeder.

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