Bird Seed - calling all bird feeding aficionados

[nightlite]

Ok.
This is the first time I have done bird feeding. It's been eye opening to say the least. I never knew I could instantly hate a bird aka a grackle as much as I have learnt to in one week's time.

So for any bird feeding experts, do you have a favourite bird seed - blend whatnot?

I've learned very fast to avoid the cheap filler ones as something in them cause the Grackles to devour the entire contents in the feeder before I can blink. Can't wait til they migrate away for the season.

PS - we should get a Home and Garden board on here...is there one? Am I totally missing it?

[ninna]

I don't have the answer to your bird seed question...but I think you have a great idea about the home and garden sub forum. You should suggest that to the mods. Currently, most home and garden stuff gets dumped in the tea room forum.

A home and garden forum is a great idea!!

[marstec]

I don't have any bird feeders but I've heard that ones with nyjer seeds are preferred. Actually, I shouldn't say I don't have any bird feeders, there are literally fifteen bird houses within three houses of mine and all the birds come to eat at the salad bar aka my garden.

[Snow Queen]

I usually get a mix for all types of birds. I know the Cardinals really love the sunflower seeds and the small birds like the tiny seeds. I hate bird feeders though for some reason I prefer throwing the seed on the ground for them.

P.S I love squirrels.. when they ARENT eating all of the seed. *mean face*

[Lynn49]

Yes, this is definitely a "you get what you pay for" purchase. My DH prefers a Niger seed mix, and we just found a bag at a good price at WalMart. We have a feeder with tiny holes just for small birds, since any other kind draws pigeons and starling..yes, they have to eat, too, but somewhere else, and they do find enough on the ground to keep them happy...hope that helps...

It also depends on what kind of birds frequent your neighbourhood and/or what birds you want to attract...
Don't forget to put pieces of yarn in your tree branches...I can't keep up with the birds around here, taking them for their nests!

YES! A HOME & GARDEN section, subdivided into decorating, gardening, and crafts!! Please???

[nightlite]

I don't have any bird feeders but I've heard that ones with nyjer seeds are preferred. Actually, I shouldn't say I don't have any bird feeders, there are literally fifteen bird houses within three houses of mine and all the birds come to eat at the salad bar aka my garden.

I don't mean to laugh but I totally giggled out loud at that one. Look at it this way, it means you're a great gardener! I am attempting my first veggie garden this summer. Considering I managed to kill my perennials plants last year, I can't even imagine how I am going to be with basic lettuce.

[nightlite]

Thanks everyone! From some minor googling it seems Black Oil Sunflower seems to be a good all around favourite. I have some small seed that I put in a separate feeder for the smaller birds that always nest each year in my neighbours evergreen.

[KK7]

When I did the birdseed I used Scotts® Songbird Selections® Multi-Bird Blend We got alot of nice birds cardinels, blue jays ect. I only stopped do to a mouse problem

[anisa]

well apparently grass seed is a BIG hit with birdies...

i've been seeding my lawn, and have does it 3 times already and those lil buggers keep snacking on my lawn!

seriously tho, i do have a question. i would love to put out seed for birdies, but am worried about the mess they might make. do birds normally poop a lot in the area where you set up a feeder?

[Lynn49]

Anisa, we've always had bird-feeders out, and even being innundated with pigeons gobbling up what drops to the ground, I can say that I've never noticed any problems with poop. Even letting Jenny onto the front yard, I'm not concerned...maybe they don't poop where they eat? So no...don't worry about that...but I'm talking grass here...although I haven't noticed anything on our driveway or car...

[avoncallingu]

Now - I'm a neophite here - relatively - I always thought that you should stop feeding birds when there are other things for them to eat or they get addicted to the free food and stay longer in your area when they should fly south. (Sorry about the grass-seed, anisa!)
We have mourning doves and a funny cardinal who keeps trying to "scare" that darned other cardinal that he sees in a mirror we have on our shed. We also have a Flicker who wakes me up with his rat-a-tat-tat on a nearby telephone pole! I miss chickadees, though, and I know that people on the other side of our small town have them - what do they like?

[bluerose]

I just buy birdfeed in the Winter,this year only one bag sunflower seeds and one bag mixed stuff,there was alot of mixed stuff left over on the ground,bacon fat in a can for woodpeckers but the birds are having a hard time with this crazy weather. Mother Nature left many apples on a tree and the robins pecked at those. Its 25*f this morning with snow on the ground thinking there may be a lot of frozen eggs this morning.

p.s. a humming bird feeder in Summer

[nightlite]

Ok here's a bird feeding update. I went and bought some of the Top Crop plain Black Oil Sunflower seeds and put them in my main bird feeder. The other mixed generic wild bird grain went to the other one.

Well, lemme tell you a flock of beautiful yellow finches came to the sunflower one and have been at it all morning. The grackles - knock on wood - aren't touching it. But the other feeder with the mixed grain hasn't been touched at all. Go figure.

[Lynn49]

Now - I'm a neophite here - relatively - I always thought that you should stop feeding birds when there are other things for them to eat or they get addicted to the free food and stay longer in your area when they should fly south. (Sorry about the grass-seed, anisa!)
We have mourning doves and a funny cardinal who keeps trying to "scare" that darned other cardinal that he sees in a mirror we have on our shed. We also have a Flicker who wakes me up with his rat-a-tat-tat on a nearby telephone pole! I miss chickadees, though, and I know that people on the other side of our small town have them - what do they like?

You're absolutely right, Avon....it's the winter when birds really need to be fed in our feeders. However, I've also heard that this time of year, there aren't the seeds, berries they requires, so supplemental feeding helps them get past this time, until there's natural food readily available to them. They really should be relying on natural sources, seeds, berries, and redistributing the seeds they don't digest in...ahem...other places through their droppings during the summer.
But it's really hard to resist feeding them and attracting them to our yards...our winters are so long...and the sights and sounds of birds in our yards in the summer is tantalinzing!

[Lynn49]

Ok here's a bird feeding update. I went and bought some of the Top Crop plain Black Oil Sunflower seeds and put them in my main bird feeder. The other mixed generic wild bird grain went to the other one.

Well, lemme tell you a flock of beautiful yellow finches came to the sunflower one and have been at it all morning. The grackles - knock on wood - aren't touching it. But the other feeder with the mixed grain hasn't been touched at all. Go figure.

Wow. If you can stave off pigeons and grackles, you done real good, HON!