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When Recycling Goes to the Birds – Creating Recycled Bird Feeders

Looking for a way to pass the time on these cold winter days? Making homemade bird feeders is a great indoor project that will keep you and the kids entertained while waiting for the birds and warmer spring weather to arrive!

Homemade bird feeders can be crafted from a wide variety of materials found around you home and are a great way to interact and engage with your children inside when the weather is too cold to go outside. Below you will find just a few different types of recycled bird feeders that you can easily create with items from your home.

  1. Soda bottle feeder: Have an empty soda bottle lying around? Start by cutting a small hole about ¼ of the way up the bottle. Just opposite of the hole, make another one, about the size of a nickel. Repeat the process about ¾ of the way up the bottle. Insert old wooden spoons through the holes with the bowl of the spoon on the side of the larger hole. The spoon handles will act as perches, and the bowl of the spoons will allow a bit of food to pool where the birds can eat. Drill a hole in the lid of the bottle and loop with string or fishing line. Finally, fill the bottle with bird seed, hang, and watch the birds fly in for a feast.
  2. Pinecone feeder: If you happen to live in an area where coniferous trees flourish, collecting pinecones is probably a regular part of your lawn care routine. Rather than throw these cones in with your yard waste throughout the year, save a few of the larger cones to make crafty pinecone bird feeders! Simply coat the pinecone generously with a layer of creamy peanut butter and roll or sprinkle with bird seed until evenly covered. Using a string or small piece of wire, attach the pinecone to a nearby branch and get ready to enjoy the birds.
  3. Coffee can feeder: This recycled bird feeder is a great project for younger children. Start by laying an empty coffee can on its side. Cut each end into the shape of a ½ circle; if it has a plastic lid, the lid can simply be cut in half and placed back on the container. The outside of the feeder can be decorated with permanent markers. Fill the feeder with birdseed almost to the top of the half-circle bottoms, run a string all the way through the top of the feeder, and hang up for feathered friends to enjoy.
  4. Paper towel tube feeder: While easily recycled, toilet paper and paper towel tubes can also be repurposed before recycling to further extend their useful life. Start by filling a large dish or plate with a layer of loose bird seed. Next, use a spatula to apply an even coat of creamy peanut butter to the exterior of the cardboard tube. Once the tube is fully coated in peanut butter, simply roll it through the dish or plate of bird seed until it is evenly coated. Now you can either poke a hole in one end of the tube to attach a string for hanging, or simply slide the tube over a branch for the birds to enjoy!

These are just a few ways that you can get creative around the home while anxiously awaiting the arrival of spring! Get creative and think of things from a bird’s point of view. Anything that can withstand the weather and be formed into a platform with an area for birdseed will work! For more information on residential garbage and recycling in the Quad Cities region or to keep up on tips, news, and topics related to garbage and recycling, visit us online at https://www.millenniumwasteinc.com today!  


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Keeping the Community Clean

Millennium Waste Incorporated is committed to the growth and well being of the Quad Cities area. That’s why it’s so important to us to contribute to community events and activities. As proud members of the cities we serve, we are dedicated to youth involvement and keeping Betterndorf, Davenport, East Moline, Moline, Rock Island and all of our communities clean.

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  • Cinco De Mayo Festival
  • Bettendorf July 4th Festival

Contact us today with questions or suggestions.

 

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