How can we keep squirrels from stealing the food from the bird feeder?

my mother used to have bird feeders on a pole, in the middle of the yard, away from trees. She used to vaseline the poles to keep the squirrels away.How can we keep squirrels from stealing the food from the bird feeder?
I think just about anyone that puts out bird feeders has a squirrel or two that messes with the feeder. I have tried everything. Even those new ';squirrel proof'; feeders. Two different kinds. One swings around like crazy when the squirrel gets on it. They learned how to slow it down do they can still get the food. The other feeder has a perch on it and when the squirrel gets on it his weight closes the feeder. Well they have learned to get around that too. I put Cayenne


pepper around and in the food, heck, the squirrels don't mind. I think they like it. I used the slippy barriers, but they did not work either. The squirrels have all day to figure all of these things out. Finally, I gave in and just put a squirrel feeder on the other side of the house and keep it full. I put peanuts and sunflower seeds and corn in it. I also put a few woodpecker logs (squirrels love them) around the squirrel feeder. At least now, they don't empty my bird feeders. They still come to the bird feeders once in a while, but not near as often.How can we keep squirrels from stealing the food from the bird feeder?
Two approaches - food that they do not care for or is not wirth their effort, and physical barriers.





First - stuff the do not like you can look up on line. To make it not worth their effort, put out something that is easy for them to get at with food they like, so they will not want to hassle with the bird feeder. It will take experiemtning.





Second build a barrier that makes it impossible for them to get a grip and move around. A circle of slick metal, that has a radius longer than their body length should work. It would go on the string well above the feeder. Should keep some rain off %26amp; provide shade too.





See links for more info/ideas - especially the last one, it'll crack you up!
why do you want to? have you seen the gymnastics some people have got squirrels to do for a nut? the only way to stop them is to make the table impossible to climb with some sort of ';skirt'; round the edge, and put it far from walls and trees that the squirrels can jump from.
there is a type of bird feeder that when some animal heaver than a bird that the door will just close on theme so they wont get the food from the bird feeder
I hang feed corn on the cob from a low hanging tree limb ...tie it with a small cord about three feet from the ground...make the squirrels work for it