If you have any leftover Christmas food that is starting to go off, you might be tempted to just throw it away – but you don’t have to as it can be put to good use in your garden.
Mia O’Hare Showbiz Reporter
13:05, 29 Dec 2025
Birds will enjoy your Christmas leftovers(Image: Callingcurlew23 via Getty Images)
After days of feasting on festive fare, some items may be nearing their expiry date. We all enjoy stocking up on our favourite treats during the Christmas season, but there’s only so much cake, cheese, and nuts one can consume.
However, before you reach for the bin to discard your Christmas leftovers, consider this: many leftover foods can actually benefit your garden and attract birds, providing them with a festive treat.
Garden expert Michael Griffiths has shared his tips on social media, urging people not to waste their Christmas food. Instead, he suggests creating fat balls to feed the birds in your garden.
He advised: “Don’t bin your Christmas leftovers, turn them into bird food. These DIY fat balls are one of the easiest ways to help garden birds through winter and reduce food waste at the same time.”
You can make a fat ball from Christmas scraps(Image: nitrub via Getty Images)
Michael explained how you can easily make these balls at home using leftover cake crumbs, cheese, raisins, and unsalted nuts. All you need is some twine, empty yoghurt pots, and lard, beef suet or goose fat, reports the Express.
Combine your dry leftovers in a bowl. Melt your chosen fat in a pan and pour it over the dry ingredients.
To create your fat ball, simply poke a hole through a yoghurt pot and thread the twine through.
Tie a large knot at the end that sits inside the pot. As your mixture begins to set while cooling, you can mould it together and place it in the yoghurt pot.
Ensure the large knot of your twine is positioned at the top of the mixture, then place your fat balls in the fridge overnight to harden.
The following day, you can simply remove the yoghurt pot and hang your fat ball in the garden. Enjoy watching birds feast on your leftovers that would have otherwise been discarded.
According to the RSPB, different foods will attract various bird species. If you’re hoping to attract robins, dunnocks, blackbirds and song thrushes, be sure to put out grated cheese.
However, avoid blue or overly strong cheeses.
Fruits such as apples and pears are favoured by thrushes, tits and starlings, while dried fruits will attract blackbirds, song thrushes and robins.
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