Got these
This message was edited Wednesday, Mar 13th 3:27 PM
Looking for Thistle Seed
troy
Mar 05, 2002
i don't have niger but i do have some scotch thistle seed that i can trade. this is seed that i colected last year and planted some a few weeks ago and got good germ
troy, i had a lesser spotted woodpecker (size of a sparrow - v cute!) on my scotch thistle, so it fills the bill - ha ha - for HoniBees birdfood. Though it wasn't the seed it was eating. It was drilling through the stems to get at some grubs inside!
This thistle self seeds all round my garden, it's a beauty. The goldfinches (and greenfinches and sparrows and probably lots of others, love eating the seed)
Baa
Mar 05, 2002
Centaurea niger is much less of a thug than scotch thistle. I'm afraid I've just sown all my C niger, if I come across some more I'll let you know.
Honibee, I have some thistle seed that I bought to feed my birds would that work? you are more than welcome to some.
Baa, we are talking about the same plant - Onopordium giganteum? Don't see it as a thug at all. OK it seeds around, but if it ends up somewhere you don't want it, it's easy to remove. Not like it's creeping cousins, or nettles..... And the poor love is a biennial, so it's hardly going to take over. It's one of my favourites anyway.
Perhaps it behaves differently for you? or we're talking about different beasts (the name thing!!):) Interested to know.
Baa
Mar 06, 2002
Same thing Philomel, I find it seeds everywhere.
Okay, so I am confused what do I want? I want it to feed finches in the yard.
Pebble I think they heat or something the thistle you buy in birdfeed at least that is what I read.
Baa
Mar 06, 2002
Honibee
Is this what you mean?
http://www.birdsforever.com/niger.html
troy
Mar 06, 2002
yes the scotch thistle is nasty, very sharp spines and they do grow everywhere. also the seeds are fairly heavy so they don't float so far as some of the more invasive specie. but i think they are very inpresive. I've seem them as tall as 1o feet and the silver downey leaves are very sharp looking (pun intended) and to kill them all you have to do is cut the root a few inches down as they do not have creeping root stock. the gold finches around here love them
Finches love millet too,and its easy to grow and is really very pretty....
Okday where do I get millet seed to plant? I don't want something that sticks and pokes everything.
Baa
Mar 07, 2002
Honibee
Niger seed isn't a 'Thistle' like the Scotch Thistle, thats just a common name applied to the plant. The Niger seed is from Guizotia abyssinica. Both Scotch Thistle and Niger are in the same family but then so are Daisies. You can find Niger seed using the botanical name in Chiltern Seeds catalogue
Millet is again another name which may be common to several plants, Milium effusum is wild millet but I always thought the bird seed came from a Sorghum grass. I may be wrong about this so it's worth some research. Again I think Chilterns also supply the seeds.
If you go to a pet store ask about whole millet head,people buy them for their cage birds.Just buy a couple heads,shake the seeds out and water,it will just look like grass when it comes up but soon the seed heads form.Very pretty and the birds LOVE it.You can also go to a feed store and get it by the pound ,already off the seedhead,also niger seed .My local Agway carries them.(they also like Broom corn)