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Critter Valentines
by Heather Harden
Winter is a tough time of year for the wild critters in your neighborhood, especially in areas that are snow covered. Birds and squirrels need an extra bit of fat in their diet to help sustain them this time of year.
This month we will be making Valentine’s Day treats for the birds and squirrels in your yard. The first project is Peanut Heart. This is a heart shaped peanut wreath to hang on your porch rail or in a tree for the squirrels. The other is a yummy suet treat with lots of seeds, fruit & nuts that birds and squirrels will both love. As you gather the ingredients and make the treats try to hold gratitude and warmth in your heart for all the ways the wild critters in your yard enrich your life.
Tools:
• Scissors
• Wire cutters
• Pliers
• Large heavy needle – size 14 darner or a size 13 tapestry needle
• Kitchen knife
• Rubber spatula
• Large size pot
• Cookie pan with about a one inch lip.
• Kitchen stove
Optional (but fun): sturdy metal cookie cutters
Materials:
• Floral wire - 16 gauge pre-cut 18” stems and 22 gauge pre-cut stems or by the spool – available at most craft stores that carry silk floral arrangements
• Peanuts in the shell raw & unsalted – one pound will make about 7 – 8 hearts
• Peanut butter – 2 cups creamy or chunky
• Solid vegetable shortening – 2 cups
• Lard- 2 cups (1 pound block)
• Black oil sunflower seed - 2 cups
• Corn Meal - 2 cups – white, yellow or blue corn meal is acceptable
• Chopped nuts - 1 cup – any nut is fine
• Raisins or dried cranberries – 1 cup
• Wire suet cage – these can be purchased anywhere bird seed or feeders are sold
Optional: Pine cones – pick wild or occasionally available in floral departments of craft stores – AVOID ones that have been scented
Peanut Hearts
It will take approximately 30 peanuts to make a heart with the 18” wire stem. Using the pliers, bend a 16 gauge wire stem in half.
With the needle, poke holes through the middle of peanuts. The hole should be offset 90 degree from where the peanut breaks naturally. Thread the peanuts on one leg of the wire to within one inch of the end.
With the pliers, make a 90 degree bend in the wire about a half inch from the end and fold this over to make a small loop.
Fill the other leg of the wire with peanuts, also to within an inch of the end. Again make a 90 degree angle with the pliers. Before closing the loop hook it into the first loop and then close the second loop.
Gently shape the sides into a heart. Attach a piece of 22 gauge wire to the center of the heart. Make sure the wire is long enough to secure the treat to a porch rail or branch.
Wrap the hanging wire around a porch rail or from a low branch. The squirrels will nibble the peanuts off the heart. I used string to hang my test models on our porch rail and had an enterprising red squirrel chew through the string and drag the whole thing away. Thanks to Melissa LeBrun at Creative Trails in Auburn, Maine for allowing me to share her peanut treat idea!
Suet Treats
In a large pan over medium-low heat, melt the peanut butter, vegetable shortening and lard. Stir to combine. When the mixture has completely melted, set it in the refrigerator or outside to cool.
When the mixture just starts to solidify a bit, mix in the sunflower seeds, corn meal, nuts and raisins. Scoop the mixture onto the cookie pan to about ¾ - 1” deep. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer until it just starts to freeze. This will take roughly and hour. If the mixture is freezes too much it will be difficult to cut. Simply leave it at room temperature until it is soft enough to use.
When the mixture has partially hardened, remove it from the freezer. You can either use a knife to cut it into blocks the size of the wire suet cages or use the cookie cutter to make fun shapes. When cutting the blocks, use the wire suet cage as pattern. Cut the blocks about a ½ inch smaller in width and length than the wire cage.
Press the cookie cutter firmly into the mixture; you may have to rock the cutter to cut through the seeds and the semi-frozen mixture. A cushioned cookie cutter makes this task easier on the hands. You could also use a folded paper towel over the cookie cutter to protect your hand when cutting the shapes. Usually the suet shapes stay in the cookie cutter when you pull the cutter out of the mixture. Gently press the suet mixture out of the cookie cutter. Otherwise use a thin spatula to remove the shape from the pan.
After the mixture has been cut to a serving size pieces you can place the blocks or “cookie” shapes in a wire suet cage.
Photo: WireCageBlock & WireCageHeart
A more few tips...
Hang the wire suet cage from a branch. It would be better not to use this treat around your porch as the mixture will stain the wood.
Treats that are not used immediately should be stored in a closed container or in resealable plastic bags in the freezer. If storing multiple treats in the same container, place waxed paper or baking parchment between the individual treats to keep them from freezing together. The little scraps of mixture that are left over after using the cookie cutter can be fed to the squirrels and ground feeders by placing them on the ground in protected areas, such as beneath a tree.
Leftover mixture that does not fit into the cookie pan can be smeared directly on any rough tree bark. This is a particular delight for the nuthatches. Don’t smear the mixture on ornamental trees as it will make a grease stain on the bark.
The suet mixture can also be used to make pine cone feeders. See Spirit Living, April 2007, “Making Home-made Bird Feeders”, for complete instructions on making pinecone feeders
Please note that the suet treat is a cold weather treat only! The mixture will melt in warm weather.
If this is the first time you have fed the birds and squirrels, be patient it can take a few days to a week for them to find the treats. When you do start feeding, be consistent as they quickly become accustomed to the added source of food.
We have been feeding the bird and squirrels for several years. It is a source of constant joy, amazement and amusement to watch the goings-on in our yard each day.
Happy Valentine’s Day from our critters to yours!
Please share photos and stories about your backyard feeding adventures!
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Heather Harden has been an avid crafter for all of her life who is fortunate to have had her parents and her grandmother as wonderful creative influences. She learned about process and detail through her work in the business world as a Programmer Analyst at Bath Iron Works. As the mom to a developmentally disabled adult daughter she honed her patience and creativity. She is currently pursing the fiber arts, as a dyer and a beginning quilter.
Got cool spirit crafting ideas? Send them into SpriritLiving at submissions@spiritliving.org and please include pictures of the steps!
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