Wild bird seed mix is a blend of grains and seeds that attracts birds to your backyard. The right mix can help to keep birds coming back, year-round.
It should contain black oil sunflower, white millet, nyjer seed, and other desirable seeds for your backyard birds. Avoid mixes that include grain sorghum (milo), wheat, or other fillers that are not attractive to wild birds. These ingredients can be tossed out by birds and will eventually become a breeding ground for bacteria and fungus.
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Black Oil Sunflower
Black oil sunflower seeds come from a cultivar (or modified version) of the sunflower plant Helianthus annuus. They’re an annual crop primarily used for making cooking oil and as wild bird food.
These seeds are high in protein and fat, which is important to most birds during the colder months. They also have thin shells that make them easy for virtually all seed-eating birds to crack open.
They’re also an excellent source of thiamine and niacin, two vitamins that are difficult for many birds to get in adequate amounts in their diets.
Sunflowers grow best in full sunlight and well-drained soil. They’re also able to improve the environment around them, by pulling nutrients and soil contaminants toward the surface.
For best results, plant sunflower seeds a few weeks before the last expected frost date. Space them 1-2 inches deep and 8-12 inches apart in loose soil. Water the seeds thoroughly after planting until they’re established.
White Millet
White Millet is one of the best wild bird seeds to attract ground-feeding birds, such as juncos, doves, towhees, sparrows and quail. This seed is also very nutritious, offering your backyard birds a balanced diet with protein, fiber, fat, vitamins and minerals.
Whether you use it by itself or mix with other seeds to make your own custom blend, White Millet is a highly nutritious seed that will keep your backyard birds healthy and strong.
It’s an inexpensive wild bird seed and can be used alone in a standard tube or mesh feeder, or mixed with other seeds to make a customized blend. It’s an especially good choice for smaller finches such as American Goldfinches and Redpolls, as it offers them the nutrients they need to thrive.
Nyjer Seed
Besides being a tasty and nutritious food, wild bird seed mix can attract many different types of birds. It can be especially useful for attracting finches and sparrows, but many other small birds will also eat this seed.
The seed comes from a flower called Guizotia abyssinica that is grown in Ethiopia and India. It is sold in the United States under a variety of names including thistle, niger, nigerian, niger seeds and ramtilla.
When selecting nyjer seed for your bird feeder, look for a shiny black seed that is free from mold or other spoilage. Keeping thistle seeds fresh will help attract birds to your backyard.
You can feed this seed in tube or mesh feeders to keep it from being eaten by grackles and other aggressive birds. Alternatively, you can scatter nyjer seed on the ground under your sock feeder to attract ground foragers such as pine siskins and dark-eyed juncos.
Safflower
Safflower seeds are a small, white angular seed with a hard shell that some birds (and pets) find difficult to crack open. It is a popular bird food for cardinals, jays, chickadees, juncos, grosbeaks, titmice, doves, and finches (House, Purple).
Unlike sunflower, which has a large amount of husks that can get in the way of feeding, safflower doesn’t leave behind a mess. The husks can easily blow away in the wind, making it an ideal choice for those who want to keep their backyards tidy and free from bird food clutter.
Like other seeds in a wild bird seed mix, safflower has a high fat and protein content that provides a good source of energy for backyard birds. This makes it an excellent addition to any wild bird feeder.
