A Christmas Guide on Decorating an Animal-Friendly Outdoor Tree

Bring a unique spin to holiday decorating by creating an outdoor, animal-friendly Christmas tree for everybody to enjoy. This can be an activity for the whole family to participate in, and something the local wildlife can benefit from. So, gather together the family, find a suitable tree, scrounge around for the necessary materials, and begin!

Necessary Materials

Ladder

2-3 strings of Christmas lights of any color (The number you'll need will depend on the size of the tree you choose.)

Outdoor extension cord and an outdoor electrical socket

Length of heavy-duty thread

Scissors

Sewing needle

A few batches of air-popped popcorn, no salt or butter

10-20 large pine cones either bought at a craft store or gathered from your neighborhood

Peanut butter

Knife

Bag of birdseed

String

10-20 large carrots, unpeeled

Power drill

1. First, locate a suitable tree to decorate. Keep in mind that a very tall tree will be difficult to decorate. An evergreen tree is more traditional, but a deciduous tree (such as a maple) will work too. Pick a tree with easily accessible branches and that is in close proximity to an outdoor electrical socket.

2. Taking your lights, plug them in to make sure they all work. Replace any broken light bulbs. Using a ladder, string the lights around the tree, beginning at the top and working your way down. You may need more or less strings of lights depending on the size of your tree and the length of string lights that you're using. Plug the lights into the electrical socket, using an outdoor extension cord if needed. Last, count how many strings of lights you used and multiply that by the length of the string lights. For example, if you used two 20' strings of lights, that would give you 40' of string lights. Make note of this measurement for later.

Safety Tip: Take extra care in climbing the ladder. Make certain that it's well supported and on level, sturdy ground.

3. Using the measurement you determined in Step 2, cut a length of heavy-duty thread the same length. Thread the needle with the heavy-duty thread and begin stringing the popcorn onto the thread. You may need more or less popcorn depending on the length of your string. Once finished, tie both ends in a knot, and string the popcorn garland around the tree, using the ladder to reach the highest portions of the tree.

4. Next, we'll make some simple bird feeders to hang on the tree. Taking the pine cones, smear them with peanut butter and then roll them in a dish of birdseed. If children are helping you, they'll especially enjoy rolling the pine cones in the birdseed. Once finished, tie string to the top of the pine cone and hang them onto the tree.

5. Taking the carrots, use the power drill to drill a hole in the top of the carrot. With a piece of string, thread it through the hole and tie it in a loop. Hang the carrots from the tree. The squirrels will really enjoy the carrots as will the deer if you hang them low enough.

Safety Tip: Only adults should be using the power drill!