The key is to simply include the healthy ingredients that birds both want and need in their diet. In fact, nearly all of the basic ingredients listed below can often be found at bulk prices in local feed stores, or even on line.
Here is a look at the best way to create a great homemade bird seed mix, along with a few ingredients to avoid. Topping the list are grain sorghum milo and related filler grains. These are two ingredients found in many of the inexpensive bird seed blends on the market. They have little nutritional value, and usually end up on the ground below the feeders.
Birds love sunflower seeds, whether hulled or still in the shell. And all good mixes certainly need to include them. Black oil sunflowers seeds are the best choice for using in homemade bird seed mix. Black oil sunflower seeds are also high in protein and fiber as well. Striped sunflowers are a great choice to add to the mix as well. Although not as high as black oil seeds in nutritional value, they are a close second. If you want to keep feeders clear of shells and debris around the base, you can purchase pre-shelled seeds.
They are, of course, a bit more expensive to purchase shelled. White millet is another great choice for homemade bird see. It is a great source of protein, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus. It is also quite rich in oil as well. After batches of birdseed are mixed, the finished product is checked to see that the correct proportions of ingredients were put in each batch.
Perhaps the biggest issue facing birdseed manufacturers in regards to pet birds is the trend in avian nutrition to move away from birdseed as the main source of nutrition toward pelleted food. Pelleted food is touted as being "complete nutrition" and, according to manufacturers, no additional supplementation is necessary. Manufacturers recommend using birdseed as a treat or behavior modification tool instead of the bird's mainstay.
The advantage of pelleted food over birdseed is that it provides a bird with all the necessary vitamins and nutrients required for optimum health. Of course, the drawback to pelleted food is that some birds refuse to eat it.
In the future, birdseed manufacturers will try to formulate more mixtures with a more complete nutritional profile. Another trend in the industry is to make the industry as a whole more proactive and homogeneous. Overall, the bird feed industry is relatively fragmented with cottage-based industries to massive corporations all producing birdseed.
As a result, different states have different regulations and expectations for quality control. Industry trade associations have been attempting to deal with the quality control issue on many levels including an attempt to standardize regulations and expectations from state-to-state.
Additionally, efforts are underway to educate the entire industry on issues affecting it, such as noxious weed control in crops. Alderton, David. Barron's Publishing, Armstrong, Holly, et al. Gourmet Bird Food Recipes. Gallerstein, Gary A. The Complete Bird Owner's Handbook. Macmillan Publishing, Allen, Carolyn.
Rouhi, A. Chemical and Engineering News 4 March December Kaytee Products Web Page. Toggle navigation. Made How Volume 7 Birdseed Birdseed. Periodicals Allen, Carolyn. Other articles you might like:. User Contributions: 1. How is bird seed sunflower seed different from human consumption sun flower seed? These mixes may even contain bits of dried fruit, dried mealworms , or other exceptional treats for birds. Elaborate mixes are often marketed as bird-specific, such as a "songbird mix" or "finch mix" depending on what seeds are included.
Backyard birders can augment commercially mixed seed by adding greater amounts of plain sunflower seeds, peanuts , or other foods. It is also possible to buy quantities of plain seeds and create a homemade, custom mix suited just to the specific birds that visit your feeders. Mixed seed can be offered in many types of feeders, including hoppers, tubes, and mesh feeders, as well as open trays or platforms or even just sprinkled on the ground for easy feeding.
Black oil sunflower seeds are the single most popular seed for different bird species. A key component of many birdseed mixes, black oil sunflower seeds, are also available without other seeds mixed in.
These seeds are also often formed into seed blocks and cakes, often with whimsical shapes such as hearts, bells or wreaths for holidays. Black oil sunflower seeds have a high oil content that appeals to the majority of bird species, including cardinals, chickadees, sparrows, finches, titmice, woodpeckers, grosbeaks, and jays.
As a smaller type of sunflower seeds, black oil seeds are also more economical because a single bag will contain more seeds than a similarly sized bag of striped sunflower seeds. Bird gardeners can also grow black oil sunflower seed during the summer months and birds will strip the seeds from the flower heads when the plants mature.
These sunflower seeds can be offered in a wide variety of feeders, including hoppers, tube, or mesh feeders with wide openings and open trays and platforms. If seed is sprinkled directly on the ground, any ground-feeding birds will enjoy the feast. Similar to black oil seeds, striped sunflower seed is a good high-fat, high-oil seed that many birds will sample. The hulls on striped sunflowers are thicker and harder than black oil sunflower seed, however, making it more difficult for smaller birds or birds with weaker bills to feed.
All the birds that will eat other types of sunflower seed will munch on striped sunflower seed, but it is most popular with larger species such as cardinals , jays, and grackles. If both types of sunflower seed are available in the same mix, the striped seed may be eaten last as birds naturally seek out easier, more convenient foods first.
Striped sunflower seed can be offered the same way as black oil sunflower seed, in hopper feeders, wide-mouthed tubes, broad mesh feeders, or in open trays, dishes and platform feeders. Safflower is an annual flower seed favored by medium and large songbirds. Commercially, safflower is grown around the world, with the greatest production in Asia, Africa, and India. While it looks like a white sunflower seed, safflower is actually a completely different plant.
The white seeds are favorites of doves, titmice, and cardinals, though other songbirds will also feed on safflower seeds if sunflower seeds are not available. Safflower is generally more expensive than other seeds and may be mixed with sunflower chips or millet in premium mixes to be more affordable and appealing to more bird species. Because this seed has a somewhat bitter taste, it is usually neglected by squirrels and other wildlife , making it a good option if bird feeder pests are a problem.
Safflower can be offered in any feeder where sunflower seeds will fit, including hopper feeders, large mesh feeders, and open trays and dishes. Hulled sunflower seed , also called chips or hearts, is popular with many songbirds.
Because these seeds already have the hulls removed, there is no waste left around the feeder. Hulled sunflower seeds are rich in oil and a high source of calories for birds, making them a popular feeder option year-round. Hulled seeds are more expensive than regular sunflower seed but may be more economical when purchased by weight because there is no waste. These seeds will not grow if spilled on the ground, ideal for garden areas where extra growth is not welcome.
All songbirds, including finches, sparrows, cardinals, titmice, and chickadees, enjoy hulled sunflower seeds.
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