Perhaps I am getting old but I’m finding birdwatching a fun, new hobby these days. I love my hummingbirds but hear Orioles are pretty and fun to watch too so I’m gonna lure them in with this easy, budget-friendly bird feeder with some delicious fruit! Oh! Mother’s Day is right around the corner too!! I know my Mom loves to watch birds. This would be a great gift that you or the grandkiddos can make and put their own creative twist on so keep it in mind!
First off, you can use any wire you have laying around but it will need to be strong enough to make sure it holds the fruit in and doesn’t spring ‘down and out’. I used floral wire but even on strand isn’t strong enough so I used two and twisted them together. You can also use apples or oranges as your fruit. I chose oranges to add a little color to my dull tree. You can definitely change up the shape a bit too! Just make sure your fruit will hold in well with whatever shape you decide to create. With the floral wire coming in at around $3 and oranges even less, this would be a fun gift idea for the gardener or bird watcher in your life.
I’d love to hear about your DIY bird feeder projects; what you’ve made, what birds you like to attract, etc.
Tutorial: Attract Orioles – Spring DIY Bird Feeder for Under $5
Materials
- 2 Strands of Floral Wire (or your wire of choice)
- Oranges (or apples)
- Any pair of pliers you have laying around the house
Instructions
- Intertwine your 2 strands of wire together to make one strong piece.
- Using your pliers, hold the beginning piece of wire straight and begin to coil around and upwards, leaving about 4″ uncoiled.
- Take that 4″ and make a loop out of it. This will be your hanger so that you can hang it from a tree limb or hook.
And just for kicks, here’s a photo of my hummingbird!
That is really cute! And you know, I had no idea birds ate fruit. I thought they just ate seeds. We have these little tiny birds (starling maybe) building a nest inside our brick mailbox, I should probably put something out for them.
I didn’t either Cat but I’ve been reading about a few types. I REALLY must be getting old. LOL Your birds…are they regular sparrows? They’ll usually nest anywhere.
My father is a true Bird watcher and feeder. But I bet he does not know about this idea you have. I will share this with him and see what he says.
I so love you blog page. Love to learn more from you and I am a Texas Cowgirl/mom too
Take care
I love this idea! I have tons of hummingbirds outside my apartment and this looks like a great way to feed them.
Just be sure to change the fruit out daily so it doesn’t ferment. The wildlife federation around here was having problems with DRUNK birds a few years back. They were having problems flying because they were impaired. They were flying into quite a few car windows and such. At first the health dept. thought they had some kind of disease and that’s why they were dying that way, but autoposies to rule out bird flu showed they were intoxicated from fruits that people were putting out and leaving out for days. So just change out the fruit daily so you don’t end up with alcoholic little bird brains. LOL, well it’s not really funny, sorry.
Hey there! This is so cute and I’m going to get the kids busy this week! Perfect for their grandmothers and aunts! Thank you for the idea – I linked your project on my blog. :)
I love this. I am going through about 6 oranges a day and a 32 oz bottle of grape jelly every 2 days. Orioles, Grosbeaks & Tangers have taken over this year. I’ve even seen a few of the Red winged Black birds nibbling on the oranges and strawberrys. I was going to order another orange feeder but think Ill make one, thanks!!
This is an awesome idea! I have old baling wire that I have saved each time after I open a new bale. I knew there had to be some way I could repurpose it!
I’m a bird watcher too! I found your idea on Pinterest. I’m going to make a few of these to use during the spring migration. I’m trying to attract the Oriole too. Thanks for sharing your idea.