How do you make bird Fat Balls........No Jokes please

[josaphine32]

I look after an elderly lady who has loads of birds that she feeds in her garden, I noticed the other day that she had loads of berries/apples in her freezer that she wont use as she has no idea how long they have been in the freezer, She has loads of the coconut shells left from previously feeding so i was wondering...is it just lard or what else goes into them,
any help would be great

[chrissa1]

Beef Dripping?

[patricia53]

I saw Philippa Forrester making fat balls for birds with just fruit and lard on tv last night - the birds loved them.

[sandyRoe]

Or Lard.

[NazNomad]

American site, but some good ideas ... http://www.sialis.org/suet.htm

[madmaggot]

The berries and apples are ideal for blackbirds/thrushes and their family.
Melt your fat, add wild bird seed, crushed peanuts and cut up apple bits and berries.
As it starts to cool put it into the coconut shells and when cold hang in the trees, below hedges or other sheltered spots (so the sparrow hawk won't get the small birds as they feed).

[lankeela]

Make sure you avoid turkey fat.

[wolf63]

Why not turkey fat?

My dad used to feed the birds left-over chicken but he said he felt cruel doing so.

[wildwood]

OK, no jokes, no matter how tempting.

[Chaffinch]

I leave lard to get to room temperature (don't have to melt it then), I then add seed, peanuts, and fruit (dried i.e saultanas, if I have no berries left in the freezer), then kneed the whole lot togther and either form into balls or put into containers. I occasionally add some dried mealworm too.

The woodpeckers love the fruitie ones

[Brinjal]

just fat or lard.