Squirrels are easy to feed and tend to be opportunists. Sometimes they find things to eat that are not the best for them, as you can see in this picture, but at the end of the day then tend to get their nutrition from nuts and seeds and are constantly gathering.
If you live in an area with lots of trees, especially oak trees they will eat the nuts, but they will also snack on maple tree wings (those annoying things that land in the grass and start to grow)
If you would like to feed the squirrels, dried seeds, nuts and corn are perfect contenders. Here are some great products that work for my backyard squirrels that also keep them off my bird feeders! Or try making your very own homemade squirrel food click here for the recipe
Squirrels absolutely love these. You can get feeders just to house these or simply place them on the ground. But I like to make them work for it just a little bit by using a feeder just for them. Getting these supplies online are often cheaper and can be delivered right to your door. Also if you like to feed larger birds such as blue jays, red cardinals and such, they love these as well. They will dance with the squirrels to get their share!
This mixture can be put in a separate feeder from your expensive bird seed, for the squirrels and larger birds. They will totally enjoy this mixture of seeds, corn and peanuts. It is a convenient way to feed them. Just make sure to use a feeder for larger seeds or a squirrel feeder.
These are really nice treats for squirrels, especially in the long winter when it can be hard to get at their buried food. You can buy these online but you can also make your own homemade squirrel treats if you prefer.
These work best on a specialized squirrel corn cob feeder. You don't want them simply running off with an entire cob, you want to see them eat it and be entertained for your money! You can get the cutest cob feeders online at Amazon. Here is an example below.
I know there are pictures of birds on the bag, but squirrels absolutely love sunflower seeds too!
If you give them their very own feeder, they can sit and eat and you will see the squirrels fight and play for it and even if some end up on the ground they will find them!
Place a Sunflower Seed Feeder in the Flower Garden
This way all the empty shells will land in the garden and become mulch or ground cover. I noticed no more weeds! A win win situation, rather than raking them out of the grass. Squirrels can be messy, but they are so fun to watch especially when they no longer go for your smaller bird feeder.
Larger Birds Love Them Too
I had noticed on my regular bird feeders that larger birds were taking over, and although I love them too, my gold finches and chickadees were intimidated. So when I set up the squirrel feeder with nuts and seeds I noticed they would join the squirrels for the treats, which is very entertaining. The birds hold their own!