How to Build a Scarecrow for Free in Ten Minutes

This scarecrow flashes continually as the wind moves and spins the CDs. That's very disconcerting to the birds and my Llahsa Apso. My Llahsa is'nt the sharpest tool in the shed, so her timidity shouldn't lend us any encouragement. Now if it scares cats away from my garden, the world will be one step closer to perfection.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 1"x1" stake
• Thin wood strips
• Hammer
• Nails or screws
• Screwdriver
• String
• CDs

1. 1. Drill a small hole through a CD on the outer edge.

2. 2. Tie a one foot length of string to the hole in the CD.

3. 3. For trees, tie the free end of the string to a limb. Use multiple tree limbs, and put some high in the tree, some in the middle, and some close to the ground for the most positive effect. Not the most appealing sight perhaps, but you won't care when you're eating cherries you would have lost to birds later on in the summer.

4. 4. For the garden, pound a substantial wooden stake (1"x1" works great) into the spot you want your "scarecrow" to do its work.

5. 5. Use two screws or nails to attach each piece of thin scrap wood at 90 degrees to the stake you pounded into the ground. It should make an "L" shape. You can think of it as an arm on your scarecrow.

6. 6. Screw on additional arms, coming off multiple sides and heights of the 1x1 stake, for increased effectiveness.

7. 7. Tie the free end of the string coming off of a CD to each arm.

Tips & Warnings

• CDs that are great for this project are those video games and music CDs that your teenagers bring home that just aren't up to the standards set for your home. I have felt great joy knowing that Aerosmith is swearing at the birds instead of into my son's ears, and that Grand Theft Auto 5 is abusing chickadees instead of my son's brain.
• Use intelligence in deciding placement of your scarecrows. If the CDs can be seen from the road you might become famous as the neighborhood crazy person. Tour busses will add you to their maps, identifying you as someone that is trying to signal the mother ship.