A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion Hobbies, Crafts and Creativity The Bird Lovers Forum Suet

I read this recipe in my Birds & Blooms magazine.

2 cups cooking grease
5 cups cornmeal
3 cups flour
milk or water
1 cup barley
2 or 3 eggs
1 cup rice

Mix together and thin with milk or water. Spread onto baking sheets and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Let cool and crumble.


In the same magazine it said to buy beef suet at your local butcher shop for the Pileated woodpeckers.

I am confused. I thought suet was made into cakes. If I crumble this all up, what do I do with it. Does one put it on a platform feeder ???

also: I assume the rice is the long grain not the instant---but is it cooked or raw ??

It must be cooked. Raw rice will kill birds. At least some birds and why it isn't suggested to use for weddings any more. But the baking with extra liquids may cook it enough.

NEVER feed uncooked rice to birds. It will swell in their tiny tummys and.... uhhhh... the result would not be good

Oh sure.... just because you can type with more than one finger, ya beat me!

I only type with two, WW.

Both are the middle ones.

OK, Kids---shape up & fly right---

I told the truth, nothing but the truth so help me.......

I made suet today.

Cow fat melted
sunflowr seeds
Wild bird seed
corn on the cob shelled (small like popcorn)
quaker ole fashion oats
cereal
wild bird seeds
put them in jello molds an put them in the snow to harden.
Put them in the freezer till needed. At 20º the birds are fighting for food here.

dodge ;o)

Thorn calls the birds to HIS suet, "Here Birdie, birdie, birdie! Here bird, bird, bird! SUUUUUUU-ETTTTTTT!"

Do they answer??

Sometimes...they come to me in my dreams...they tell me I have to kill them ALL!...and to do it messily!

Was that after a bottle of scotch?

Nope. They tell me to dress in women's clothes and use a Barbed-Wire whip.

Hope you bleed for that.

Only way to cleanse you mind.

Did you wear a kilt?

Nope, although I'm thinking about getting a Utilikilt.

We are expecting 4 - 8 inches of snow tomorrow so I will be photographing heavily! Hoping to get Male Cardinal and Junco pictures in the snow.

0º here friday morning.
Wow I rode the atv to get the paper. I know how cold that was.. But quick.

We had terrific wind yesterday an most of the snow is blown away .
We need some artic wraps.

Hold off on kilts .LOL

I went and looked at the picture and she was crumbling her suet onto a platform type feeder.

It didn't say cooked rice but I'm sure, like the others, that it should be cooked.

Thornius, I think you have been visiting the batty cave.

Why use rice at all?

I make my suet with animal fat. Cook it down to a liquid .
Add your seeds an let it cool in the snow.

I put it in the suet cage.
I made one out of hardware wire also.
THey dont seem to like that one.

It gets very firm with animal fat(Lard).

dodge

I do NOT go to bat caves. The bats tell that I am wrong and EVIL to listen to the birds and follow their instructions. The Bats tell me to do good and treat ALL living creatures with kindness, love, and respect......I HATE the Bats!

Thanks so much for the answer, sheri.

Fianlly, yesterday & today, I saw a woodpecker on the blueberry suet.
possibly a female? it had no color to its head at all.
Just the black & white.

and Ta Da !!!! I saw 2 sets of cardinals.

Good for you .

Probably the female wp........

I see the one with red top daily.
THe
red belly an red head not often.

b

thanks, Dodge.

I have never made suet but the magazine also talked about getting beef suet from your butcher and using it to make cakes. I used to buy suet to put out but stopped when the grackles came to town. They would eat the suet in 10 or 15 minutes.

are starlings the same bird>?

suddenly i have those moving in here--
Rod says they akll have to eat--I say not at these prices. I say I will feed the "pretty" birds but not the ugly intrrusive ones.