Make a ‘Really Rubbish Scarecrow’!
Calling All Primary Schools!
Put your imagination to the test with this year’s Really Rubbish Scarecrows competition at Home and Garden Show Ireland! Your challenge? Build a scarecrow that’s utterly useless at scaring off birds but brilliant at attracting them!
Get creative with recycled materials—think old clothes, scrap fabric, and bits and bobs destined for the bin and give them a new life in your scarecrow.
Applications for the 2026 Really Rubbish Scarecrow competition will close on 15 May.
Hints
- To do their job, scarecrows have to stand out in the field in the wind and rain, so they must be sturdy to withstand bad weather. IT IS ESSENTIAL TO USE STURDY WOOD. DO NOT USE BAMBOO STICKS AS THEY ARE NOT STRONG ENOUGH AND THE SCARECROW WILL FALL APART.
- Keep your scarecrow light and not top heavy.
- Use waterproof paints and glues.
- Don’t use Mummy’s best dress without getting permission!
Themes
- Best in Show
- Most Eco Friendly
- Most Imaginative
- Quirkiest
- Special Category: Best at attracting Birds
The scarecrows will be displayed in Really Rubbish Scarecrow Land for all to see.
Rules of Entry
- This competition is open to all primary schools across Northern Ireland.
- Each scarecrow must be completed and delivered to Antrim Castle Gardens by 9 June 2026
- Each scarecrow must come with a name tag to display the scarecrow’s name, the school name and the name of the person/s/class who made the scarecrow.
- The scarecrows MUST be within the maximum permitted dimensions
- Each school can enter multiple scarecrows and numbers must be confirmed on the form below.
- All scarecrows will be displayed at Garden Show Ireland in Antrim Castle Gardens 12 – 14 June 2026.
Things You Will Need
- x1 Wooden stake approx. 1.55m long (approx. 5ft) x 2 inch square
- x1 Wooden stake approx. 1m long (approx 3ft) x 2 inch square
- x1 Wooden stake approx. 30cm long (approx 12 inches) x 2 inch square
- Old clothes (shirt or jumper, trousers, hat etc)
- An old pair of tights
- Some straw or hay
- String
How to Make Your Scarecrow
- First of all, tie the 1m stake to the 1.55m stake, about 15cm from one end, in a cross
- shape and then tie the other stake in the same way about half way down.
- This is the frame of your scarecrow.
- You are now ready to make a head. Cut one leg from the tights and fill with some straw.
- Push the straw firmly to the end and make it into a ball shape.
- Tie a piece of string around the tights to stop the straw falling out.
- Now tie the ball shape to the top of the frame.
- You can now dress your scarecrow by placing the shirt on the top crossbar
- and the trousers on the smaller bar.
- Push straw or hay inside the clothes to fill them out.
- IF you want to, you can put a hat on the head.
- If you want you can push some straw under the hat and
- leave it dangling out to look like hair.
- Your Really Rubbish Scarecrow is now ready to start attracting all those birds!
