Good quality mixed seed: a good idea, or a bad one?

I keep reading conflicting thoughts about feeding seed mixes. Some say it is a bad idea, even with good quality mixes, because birds will make a terrible mess kicking out the seed that they don't like as they look for their favorites. They say that mixes are just wasteful.

Other sources say that you will attract a wider range of birds if you use a good quality mixed seed, and you'll make your ground-feeding birds happy.

I'm wondering what you all think of this? I found what looks like a good quality mix made by Scott's called No-Waste. It consists of sunflower hearts, peanut halves, millet and cracked corn. Or am I better off continuing to feed just sunflower hearts?

I'm a novice myself, but I didn't have much luck attracting birds to my feeding area until I switched over to a no waste mix. I now have fourteen species of birds visit me daily and what one doesn't eat the other does. The mix I use is a nut and berry mix.

I also have sock feeders with thistle seed for the Goldfinch

What kind of nuts and berries are in the mix you are you feeding, adelbertcat? Are there seeds in there as well?

The no waste kind certainly solves the problem of all the shells, etc., laying under the feeders... I am fortunate to have enough livestock in my yard that between the doves and the squirrels and the chipmunks, nothing goes to waste, I just have to clean up the seed casings.
Best to do, Lady_Eagle, decide what birds you want to attract and buy what they like... peanuts for jays, etc., thistle for finches, ..... black oil sunflower takes in the widest range of birds. Suet is another option that cuts down on the mess and still attracts a variety. Of course, mealworms are "no waste" but expensive.
I feed a seed mix of a couple kinds of sunflowers, cherries, nuts, etc., and, like I said, whatever goes to the ground is quickly eaten by the ground feeders. The shells then get sucked up by a leaf vac on the weekend.
Millet in bird feed is kind of like corn in dog food... it's an inexpensive filler and goes to waste in most cases... it comes in most of the cheap cruddy bird seed blends. If you can get a bag of seed for less than $1, you're prob. paying for millet and little else. I stay away from those. I've looked at those bags, there are maybe 50 actual sunflower seeds in there and they're tiny. I'm sure you've all seen the same kind.

ooops! wrong picture. Thats a grosbeak that thinks it's a Goldfinch. These are Lesser-Goldfinch.

love love love listening to goldfinches sing... the little buggers can blaze through some thistle seed though!

Just depends on the birds your getting. The no waste mix is especially nice for the smaller birds. Nut and Berry is also good for all sizes.

That's true and so can the House Finch.

It has walnut, almond, peanut. sunflower. wheat, cracked corn, cherries, raisens and some other seeds I'm not sure of.

Oh wow, look at all the replies! And so quickly, too. Thanks everyone!

I'm just a novice at bird feeding, this is my first season. I've been feeding sunflower hearts to avoid killing the grass with the hulls. So far I have lots of house finches, had a couple goldfinches but they're gone now, and what I think is some kind of chickadee. And the grackles, but I've gotten rid of them with my new squirrel proof feeder.

Not many kinds of birds yet, but I hope to attract more! The grackles scared off all my birds for a month, and now they're just starting to trickle back.

Those stinkin' grackles are invading my mom's house in Missouri... I had cowbirds to contend with and finally had to take my feeders down and starve them out for a while until they left and I could resume feeding!
If you like the Scott's stuff, go for it... that'd be too expensive for my budget with as often as I fill feeders (once a day in most cases).. so I get a blend from Wally World that has good stuff in it and isn't a bag of filler waste seed.
Enjoy it, Lady Eagle... it doesn't take long to get hooked on trying to attract a certain species to your yard, to know their feeding schedules, etc. I know when the cardinals start heading in for the night, for instance, that's it for the evening... they're usually the first to get to the feeders in the AM and the last to head home in the PM!
I have a blue jay, for instance, I can set my alarm to. If there aren't peanuts in his bowl outside my bedroom window by 9 a.m., he's at my window making that lovely call bluejays are so famous for!

This message was edited Jul 23, 2007 4:53 PM

We get some kind of bird seed mix from the feed store that contains millet and milo and maybe something else. We spread the bird seed on the sidewalk and something eats it all (mainly house finches, house sparrows, doves, and towhees). We put it out in the morning and it's gone before dark, so we know it isn't rats getting it. We also buy sunflower seed and niger. Scrub jays hoard the sunflower seeds. Lesser goldfinches like the niger and once in a blue moon we get a black-headed grosbeak and once even a parakeet came. Birds here don't like corn or suet, but that's just here. I know in other places they love it. I guess the bottom line is that you just have to try and see what works for you.

One thing to watch for - if the hulled 'no waste' seed gets wet, it goes mouldy much more easily than normal seed with the hulls still on. The hulls protect the seed from going bad. So you need to check the condition of the feeders more frequently, to remove anything that isn't still clean and dry.

Resin

Also, if you buy niger (thistle), don't buy more than you will use in six months. It goes bad pretty quick. You can't tell that it is bad, but the birds can and they stop eating it. Been there.

I buy a mix from wal-mart made by pennington. Then I mix it with whole sunflower. I feed a half gallon before I go to work. It is gone when I come home and I feed another half gallon. I will stop the evening feeding when the days get shorter as I get home around 4:30. Any that drops to the ground is quickly gone. The wasted hulls just add to the humus in my soil. When they pile-up I put them in the compost bin. I like to photograph mushrooms. Rotting organics help encourage mushrooms.

Heyitsmejudy, what is in the blend that you get from Walmart?

Resin, you bring up a good point about the hulled seed being more vulnerable. So far, my feeder seems to keep the seed very protected (Heritage Farms Bird's Choice Buffet), but I will definately keep my eye on the seed.

And thanks, everyone, for the replies! I look forward to seeing more birds at my feeder, and I'm really enjoying this forum. :)

I don't mind the birds flinging some seed on the ground because thats what the ground feeders eat.

Lady_Eagle... I'm at work so I can't look at the brand, ect., but it's a songbird blend... the bag says it has cherries in it and is great for cardinals.
It has a couple kinds of sunflowers, cherries, peanuts (out of the shell... no thank you to that mess!), etc.
I'll look later and see what kind it is.

Seeds on the ground sprout. I don't enjoy constantly having to pull up the sprouts.

Gosh... any seeds that make their way to the ground in my backyard are quickly scooped up by towhees, doves, squirrels and chipmunk et al. I've never had anything sprout. In fact, NOTHING grows under my feeders because of all the activity.

I get my mix at Wallyworld. It's called Kaytee. They all seem to enjoy it.

The biggest sellers at my Wallyworld are the 25# bag of pennington wild bird food and the largest bag of black oil sunflower seed.

I buy the Morningsong brand and they have a Fruit & Nut blend at Walmart. Ours doesn't always have it in the larger bags though.

I've been buying the Sun Country Farms brand of bird seed. I just bought a 20lb bag of black oil sunflower kernels. I think that I will continue to feed this, because from what I've read most birds seem to relish it. And I love not having to clean up the hulls from under the feeder, and explain to my husband why that patch of grass died (*cough* I didn't know I needed to clean up the hulls!)

And perhaps I will buy their fruit & nut (I think it's called Woodpecker blend?) and feed that in a separate feeder to attract those birds that won't eat the sunflowers. I've got a plan! :)