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What to do with empty coconut shells? (3 Viewers)

BarryH

Well-known member
The birds in my garden love the half coconut shells full of fat that I buy at the local garden centre, can anything be done with the empty shells?

Is it worth trying to refill them with a similar beef dripping and seed mix, is it a messy job or is it just as cheap to bin the shells and buy new ones?
 
I usually refill them with a fatball mix i make and they like them better than shop bought.
just melt beef dripping and peanut butter and add seed leave to set a lttle and fill your coconut halves.
 
Interesting...I've not come across what you've mentioned...Though I did hang out a coconut birdhouse...only to have a woodpecker tear it up. What birds are drawn to this mix?
 
Just half coconut shells, emptied and filled with suet and seed mix. Most of the birds on my feeders seem to enjoy them. The cost roughly £2 each, then you throw the empty shell away.
 

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Being a keen recycler I reuse the empty shells by melting suet and adding in a wild bird mix and filling the shells again.
 
Hi Kits,

Thanks for the reply, can I ask where you got the suet?

I went along to my local Sainsbury's and all I could find was the Atora suet in a box. I melted this and did exactly as you did, the birds didn't want to know. No interest at all.

I left it out for three days and as soon as I replaced it with one from the shop, the birds all came back to it again.
 
I have used the Atora suet, Barry, and it went down well. I have also melted a block of lard from Sainsburys and added seed mix and peanuts, and they liked that too. Good luck!
 
coconut

I usually refill them with a fatball mix i make and they like them better than shop bought.
just melt beef dripping and peanut butter and add seed leave to set a lttle and fill your coconut halves.

i did this with fat but as soon as the son came out it melted the fat
 
Important tip: boil up and then dry out the empty shells before refilling them, to kill any bird disease organisms stuck to the shells.
 
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