what is the best wild bird seed brand

Trying to make more feathered friends? We researched over 25 bird seed options before buying and testing the best 8 mixtures side-by-side. Our lawn and garden experts sorted through the seeds to check their quality and weighed each feeder before and after hanging them every day to track which seeds the birds preferred. We also did our research to capture information about birds outside of our range and study season, too. Whether you want to give migratory species a place to rest and recharge, keep hummingbirds humming along all summer, or help overwintering birds make it through the cold months, we have a recommendation for you. Our

Lyric Wild Bird Mix – 40 lb.

Lyric Wild Bird Mix is an excellent blend for individuals new to the birdwatching hobby, as it contains natural and nutritious ingredients at a reasonable price. Putting out a treat that your beautiful birds will want to return for is the key to drawing them to your feeder. With 6% nutritional ingredients and more sunflower seeds than other seed blends, %20Lyric%20Wild%20Bird%20Mix%20will%20draw%20birds%20from%20near%20and%20far! Attracts cardinals, doves, finches, sparrows, and more.

Value for money – 4.4 Stars
Flavor – 4.0 Stars
Freshness – 3.8 Stars

Lyric Cardinal Premium Sunflower and Safflower Wild Bird Mix

what is the best wild bird seed brand

The purpose of this carefully blended mixture is to draw cardinals to your feeder. Filling the sky with twenty-seven percent sunflower seeds, you can be sure to attract bright red birds and other large-beaked backyard species. Fill your feeders, then take pleasure in witnessing the burst of color as they come to visit you. The purpose of this carefully blended mixture is to draw more cardinals to your feeder. This lovely mixture of sunflower seeds draws in wild birds like cardinals, jays, and grosbeaks that have noticeable bills for cracking seeds. Golden safflower, an organic hybrid safflower devoid of chemicals, is also included in this mixture. Compared to white sunflower, golden sunflower has a higher nutritional content, with 15% more oil, 22.5 percent more protein, and 20-30% more fat. Because of its incredibly thin hull, golden safflower is easier for birds to consume and process.

Freshness – 4.8 Stars
Flavor – 4.7 Stars
Scent – 4.1 Stars
Value for money – 3.9 Stars

A Budget Option for the West

The Wagners Classic Blend of sunflower seeds, white proso millet, cracked corn, and milo did not shine in our Blue Ridge Mountain-based preference tests. The birds snatched the sunflower seeds and some white millet, largely leaving the cracked corn and milo behind. The majority of the mix is red milo seeds, which a lot of birds ignore. Pigeons, doves, and jays will eat it on occasion, but its most popular with western ground-feeders like Stellers jays, Gambels Quails, and Curve-billed Thrashers (Cornell again). Jays, pigeons, doves, blackbirds, finches, and sparrows will eat the cracked corn, but they dont prefer it.

Bird species include woodpeckers, pigeons, doves, titmice, nuthatches, finches, cardinals, grosbeaks, sparrows, blackbirds, jays, and gambel quails.

The accumulation of corn and milo in your feeder poses a risk of mold growth, which is detrimental to the birds. Cleaning your feeder is advised by experts at least once every two weeks, but you might need to do it more frequently with this mix to prevent less well-liked seeds from stagnating. Although the white millet in the mixture draws ground-feeding birds such as sparrows, juncos, towhees, cardinals, and doves, it has a drawback. According to Cornell, parasitic cowbirds like it too. (They are the ones who, by pawning off childrearing, force eggs out of other birds’ nests to lay their own.) The Cornell Lab recommends using straight sunflower seeds instead. You will get all the same birds that gain from the millet without contributing to the well-being of the cowbirds. If you are willing to bring it inside if cowbirds appear, love Stellers Jays and thrashers, and reside in the western United States, this is a good combination. The birds like the Classic Blend enough, but they leave more of it on the ground and behind than with the other choices. Credit: Clark Tate 8.

FAQ

What is the best wild bird seed to buy?

Ideally, 75 percent of the seeds offered to birds at your feeders should be black oil sunflower seeds. White proso millet seeds are round, golden brown and shiny. They are favorites of white-throated, fox, chipping and other sparrows.

What is the best and worst bird seed?

Bad mixed seed can include dyed seed meant for pet birds, wheat, and some forms of red milo that only birds in the Desert Southwest seem to eat. Good mixed seed, he says, has a large amount of sunflower seed, cracked corn, white proso millet, and perhaps some peanut hearts. Check for seed at specialty bird stores… …

What are the best seeds to feed birds?

Suitable seeds and grains – like nyjer, millet, oats, and sunflower seeds. Peanuts – must be unsalted, fresh and that they don’t contain aflatoxin (a poison caused by fungus mould). Young chicks might choke on whole peanuts, so always put them in feeders with a smaller mesh.

What is the longest lasting bird seed?

Safflower Cylinder Seed Cylinders are the easiest, longest-lasting way to feed your birds. Our Safflower Cylinder is made completely of safflower seed. It attracts birds such as chickadees, titmice, cardinals, House Finches and more.