WOODPECKER HOUSE 
Here is a house that is designed especially for Mr. and Mrs. Wood¬ 
pecker. It is exactly the same kind of a house that the woodpeckers would 
build for themselves in a hollow tree. 
These birds are very beneficial to orchards because they live on the 
insects which destroy fruit trees. 
On account of so many of the dead trees being cut down these birds do 
not have a suitable place to build their nests. It is therefore necessary to 
furnish these birds with a nest box as near like the one nature furnished 
them, because this species of birds are fast disappearing. 
2. Take a piece of straight grained oak, hickory or walnut, about 6 
inches in diameter, saw one end off nice and straight and the other end on 
slant as shown in the sectional view of the drawing. Either saw or split the 
piece exactly in the center, then cut out the cavity with the one inch gouge. 
You can get the two cavities to match exactly by making a pattern or 
templet the size and shape shown in the drawing. By placing it on the 
pieces and marking around it both cavities will match after being cut out 
when putting the two halves together again. 
Assembling 
Material Required 
Lumber—Limb of an oak, hickory or walnut tree. Two pieces of white 
pine or cypress. 
Finished Sizes—In. Use 
Log 6" or 8" in diameter Body of house 
K"x8"x9" Roof 
H"x2"xl7" Back strip 
J^"x2"x4" Bottom strip 
Pieces 
1 
1 
1 
1 
Hardware, Etc. 
1^2 inch brads. 
1 inch screws. 
Tools—Rule, pencil, saw, plane, square, hammer, 1 inch gouge and 
screwdriver. 
Cutting Stock 
1. Cut out the roof, back and bottom strips and square up to the finish 
After cutting out the cavity carefully, be sure both sides are exactly alike 
and the two halves fit together nicely before fastening the log together. The 
two halves should be placed in a vise and clamped together tightly before 
putting on the roof and the bottom strip. These pieces should be screwed 
on so they may be removed after the nesting season and the house taken 
apart to be cleaned out. 
The back strip is nailed on to the house last. It is put on the back of the 
house to provide a way to fasten the house to a tree. 
Finishing 
Stain the roof, bottom and back strips a dark brown and nail the house 
in a tree from ten to twenty feet above the ground. 
Before putting this house up put about one inch of fine shavings or saw¬ 
dust in the bottom of the cavity, because when woodpeckers peck their 
own nests they always leave a certain amount of the fine chips in the bot¬ 
tom of the house. Then they finish their nests with feathers plucked from 
their own bodies, and they do not gather any other nest materials. 
Be sure and leave the bark on the piece that the body of the house is 
made of. 
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