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Family craft: heart-shaped bird feeder

Written by Alison McAllister
A heart shaped birdfeeder covered in peanuts and birdseed hangs from a branch with evergreen trees behind.
Birds will love this heart-shaped bird feeder
Show some love to all the beautiful birds in your garden this Valentine‘s Day with our easy-to-make heart-shaped bird feeder.
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What you’ll need

  • Cardboard
  • Nut butter (we used peanut butter)
  • Bird seed
  • A pencil
  • Scissors
  • String

Did you know?

If you’re visiting Greenbank Garden, you could spot a very unusual type of bird. A family of ringneck parakeets call the garden home, but they are usually found in West Africa and southern India!

A bag of bird seed, a jar of peanut butter, scissors, twine and a pencil lie on a piece of cardboard.

How to make your heart-shaped bird feeder

Step 1

Take your pencil and draw a heart shape on your piece of cardboard.

Step 2

Using your scissors, carefully cut out your cardboard heart.

Expand image 1: A hand holds a blue pencil and draws a heart on a piece of cardboard. Expand image 2: A pair of child's hands. One holds a piece of cardboard as the other uses scissors to cut out a heart shape.

Step 3

Use your pencil to poke a hole in the top of the heart.

Step 4

Cut a piece of string, thread it through the hole and tie it in a knot so it can hang from a tree.

Expand image 1: A pair of child's hands. One holds a cardboard heart as the other pokes a hole in it with a pencil. Expand image 2: A pair of child's hands use scissors to cut a piece of string while a cardboard heart lies to the right. Expand image 3: A pair of children's hands tie a piece of string.

Step 5

Spread nut butter on one side of your cardboard heart.

Step 6

Sprinkle birdseed all over the nut butter. 

Expand image 1: A pair of children's hands spread peanut butter over a cardboard heart using a table knife. The jar of peanut butter sits on a piece of cardboard. Expand image 2: A child's hand sprinkle birdseed, on to a piece of cardboard shaped like a heart and covered in peanut butter. A bowl of birdseed sits on a piece of cardboard.

Step 7

To make sure the birdseed sticks, gently press it down with the back of a spoon.

Step 8

Take your heart-shaped bird feeder outside and hang it on a branch for the birds to enjoy!

Expand image 1: A child's hand uses the back of a spoon to press birdseed onto a heart-shaped piece of cardboard covered in peanut butter. A bowl of birdseed sits on a piece of cardboard. Expand image 2: A child (head not visible) holds up a heart-shaped bird feeder, made from cardboard and covered in peanuts and birdseed. Expand image 3: A blonde haired girl holds a heart-shaped bird feeder which hangs from a tree.

Top tips

  • Use a mix of birdseed to attract different types of birds.
  • If you have nut allergies, you can substitute the nut butter for lard and use a seed mix that doesn’t contain nuts.
  • If you can, hang your bird feeder on a tree that’s visible from a window. That way, you can enjoy watching the birds as much as they’ll enjoy feasting on the yummy treat you’ve made for them!

Share your pics

Ask an adult to help you share your creations on Instagram, tagging @nationaltrustforscotland

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