What's in your feeder? The best seed to feed your garden birds

As kids my siblings and I used to fight over who could claim the title of “Hawk Eye” or “Eagle Eye” for spotting next most unusual species of bird-  or license plate. After a while, I knew I was never going to win the title so I gave up in favour of keeping my eyes to the ground in search of the next patch of wild berries. 

My parents are biological scientists so I knew that I could just ask them to identify the birds for me. What birds I do know I seemed to have absorbed by osmosis.

But since the pandemic, I’m learning to appreciate watching the birds from my deck. We started making bird feeders for Peregrine Glassworks out of recycled wine bottles in cute wood house shaped holders. The first one we mounted right outside our dining room window. Then I began to wonder, am I feeding these feathered friends the very best?

I recently asked my Dad for his advice on what seeds to feed the birds to encourage them to stay a bit longer in my backyard. 

Here’s his advice:

The crowd favourite is hulled sunflower seeds (without shells). Apparently all birds love these. If you have sunflower seeds in shells, some birds will pick through them dumping most on the ground in favor of the hulled ones.

Chickadees will eat anything. Big seeds, small seeds and suet. 

Finches like small canola seeds.

Woodpeckers like nuts and suet.

But the short of it, if you put in a mix of seeds, you will get a mix of birds. 

Seems simple right?  

If you want more published advice on seeds see this articles by Allaboutbirds.org and The Spruce.  

Another hot tip: Join the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and its app “eBird.” You can join thousands of bird watchers who track their sightings throughout the year. Watching the seasonal migration of birds through time series maps is truly amazing.

Peggy - Peregrine Glassworks