Our Wild Bird Seed Mixes – Rated Good, Better Best

It’s winter and now is a great time to feed the wild birds. So, how do you choose the seed or mix that's right for your feathered friends? The answer is that there are good mixes, better mixes and best mixes based on seed content and proportion of each seed.

Here's how the seed preference works. Some grains, such as milo and wheat are edible, but not necessarily "treats" for many birds. Corn is tasty to some – blue jays, grackles, sparrows and mourning doves in particular. Cardinals, finches and the entire sparrow family favor millet, especially the white variety. And, safflower has its following with the cardinals, sparrows and mourning doves. The all-time, most favored seed of all is black oil sunflower seed. Black sunflower will be gobbled up by nearly every seed-eating species of bird found in Kentuckiana backyards.

To assist you with your selection, we have rated our seed mixes based on their content. Seed proportions are relative to the order in the ingredient listing. Our picks are:

Good - Outdoor Mix with corn, wheat, milo and sunflower

Better – Fancy Bird Mix with millet, milo, wheat and sunflower

Best – Gourmet Cardinal Mix with safflower, white millet, peanut hearts, wheat and plenty of black oil sunflower seed (35%)

It's easy to see why "Best" is named "Gourmet Cardinal Mix". This mix features millet, safflower and sunflower, three of the cardinals' most favorite seeds. And, because five different grains/seeds are included, it will appeal to the widest variety of backyard visitors. The Audubon Society recommends this feed, and we donate a portion of each sale of Gourmet Cardinal Mix and Audubon Original Mix to benefit the local Audubon Society chapters. So when you purchase these feeds, you’re also helping the local Audubon chapters.

Fancy Bird Mix has no safflower but contains millet and sunflower, two cardinal favorites. A special Fancy Bird Mix feature is the lack of corn, one of the favorite foods of blue jays and grackles. If you do not want these noisy visitors at your backyard feeder, Fancy Bird Mix is for you.

If you want all the birds to visit but you want to watch cost too, then our "Good" rated Outdoor Mix is just for you. It’s well suited to both feeder and ground feeding.

In addition to seed mixes, you can also offer specific seeds. Black oil sunflower and striped sunflower are available at all our stores, as are peanut hearts,

safflower seed and cracked corn. Sunflower hearts (without the hulls) are also offered.

Last by not least, is thistle seed. This seed is highly prized by finches and should be offered in a special thistle seed feeder.

Winter Tips:

Birds and other wildlife need water as much as food. Be sure to offer fresh water to your backyard friends

Suet offered in suet feeders provides needed high-energy food for birds such as woodpeckers, nuthatches, flickers, and wrens.