How to Make a Stone Resin Bird Bath

Attract colorful songbirds with a stone resin birdbath.

Birdbaths are classic garden accessories and essential tools for attracting birds to your backyard. While many styles are commercially available, a natural rock birdbath lends an appealingly rustic look. Unfortunately, rock is heavy, expensive and often difficult to find in the proper shape.

Stone resin or fake rock birdbaths, like those made of hypertufa, are convenient substitutes. Hypertufa is an inexpensive mix of natural material and concrete that is both lightweight and durable and its mottled texture convincingly resembles natural limestone. Hypertufa birdbaths are easy to make and just as attractive as natural stone and the birds won't be able to tell the difference.

Things You'll Need

• Quikrete fast-drying cement
• Long-grain (unmilled) sphagnum moss
• Vermiculite
• Large bucket
• Paint stirrer or disposable wooden spoon
• Clear plastic birdbath mold, such a shallow tray, bowl or old storage box

Instructions

1. Make the hypertufa. Combine equal parts Quikrete, sphagnum moss and vermiculite (enough to cover the outside of your mold) in the large bucket, then add enough water to make a liquid with the consistence of thick pancake batter. Stir thoroughly.

2. Spread a thick layer of hypertufa on the outside of the birdbath mold.

3. Quickly invert the mold and cover the bottom with hypertufa.

4. Let the hypertufa dry for several hours.

5. Make a new, small batch of hypertufa to patch any exposed areas of the plastic mold. Turn the mold right side up and dab hypertufa on the lip of the mold to hide it completely.

6. Allow the birdbath to dry completely over several days.

7. Place the birdbath in an area of your backyard with trees and shrubbery to provide cover for birds.

Tips & Warnings

• Add a layer of natural aquarium gravel to partially hide the plastic container on the inside of the bath. A layer of rocks will give birds a foothold.

• Birdbaths should be shallow--only an inch or two deep. You can adjust the depth by adding gravel and sloping the rocks up toward the sides.

• Lay a few tree branches over the bath to give birds a place to drink without getting wet.

• Replace the water every couple of days to prevent contamination. Clean the bath with a scrub brush if algae starts to form.

References

• "The Potted Garden: New Plants and New Approaches for Container Gardens;" Scott Appel; 2001.
• Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Other Ways to Attract Birds

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• "Creative Concrete Ornaments for the Garden;" Sherri Warner Hunter; 2005.
• "How to Make 40 Beautiful Bird Boxes, Feeders and Birdbaths;" Jen Green; 2010.
• "Outdoor Stonework: 16 Easy-to-Build Projects For Your Yard and Garden;" Allen Bridgewater; 2001.