peanuts or sunflowers seeds

[seb_seb]

which goes quicker/is most popular with birds in your garden?

[IanF]

With us it's Sunflower kernels as every bird going seems to eat them.
We just get Tits, Siskins, Chaffinches and Starlings on the peanuts.

[seb_seb]

anyone tried peanut granules( peanuts at germination stage)?

[paula]

With me...sunflowers seeds as most of Devon's greenfinches come to cobble them up in super quick time!

[IanF]

I forgot about the Greenfinches - ours like both !

We use peanut granules in the wire feeders sometimes, but I suppose selfishly for us, the whole nuts keep the birds on the wire feeders for longer as they have to peck at them through the wire mesh. That way we can see them for longer. A big problem with the Tit family is that they tend to grab a whole nut or sunflower and fly off to my neighbours tree to devour the goodies - way out of sight.

[Donna]

When I put peanuts out on my fence post, they are gone in a heartbeat! I find that Blue Jays, Cardinals, Titmice, and Woodpeckers LOVE them! Of course, all of those birds like sunflower seeds, too. I use peanuts when I want a lot of action quickly. I've found that ALL birds like my homemade suet, I get all of the above mentioned birds plus sparrows of all kinds, juncos, brown thrahsers, carolina wrens, mockingbirds and goldfinch when I put it out. They also tend to stay on the post longer if someone else doesn't come along to have some goodies. Sometimes I have 2 or 3 different kinds on the post at the same time chowing down.

[Gaye Horn]

Peanuts go first and fastest around here only due to the fact that the bigger birds(jays and Maggies) get in here and do not stop til they are all dispensed!
We use Black Oil Sunflower seeds and buy it by the pallet(25 22kg bags per pallet)it goes quickly;but is dispersed differently.
I tried Safflower hearts and the birds never touched that stuff.
Cormeal suet goes very quickly here too.

[NCLady]

I've tried peanuts with the shells and without the shells. They go very fast. I thought it would take them longer if I kept them in the shells, but they take the whole thing. Mostly titmouse, nut-hatch, red-bellied woodpecker, cardinals and the blue jay. All my other feeders (6 of them) I fill with a mixture, but the sunflower seeds are a great favorite.

[new 2 this]

Sunflower seeds are the prefered meal in our garden but they also like oatmeal mixed with seed and melted fat, they eat 3 large plates on a mild day and 4+ when we get a cold snap, they prefer it warm.

We started off only getting starlings but now have doves, sparrows, coal tis (I think, must find the bins (kids misplaced lol)and check), magpies, crows, robin, the odd pigeon and other small as yet unnamed birds who fly of just as I look out the window, doh!!!

[Andrew]

I spread sunflowers seeds on the ground for Chaffinches, Sparrows, Blackbirds, Blue & Great Tits and Dunnocks and use peanuts in feeders cos they keep them there longer. Siskins, Blue Tits, Sparrows and Coal Tits use the feeders and they last longer (peanuts). I have to put more sunflowers down every morning along with maize bits and the maize is always left over for Dunnocks.

[Wingwatcher]

We only have one peanut feeder plus what goes on the ground. We have 13 seed feeders with black oil or mixed seed. I think that if we had one seed and one peanut, it could be a tie.

[MikePearson]

In my feeders the peanuts are mostly eaten by sparrows and starlings. Most other birds prefer the sunflower kernels.

Incidently, I have started to use the RSPB de-hulled mixed seed that includes sunflower seed. I thought that I would offer them a bit of variety but it seems that my birds reject some of the seed. They take out and drop the offending articles until the seed of there choice appears.

I have just removed the tray from the bottom of the feeder and there is a good mixture of all the types of seed present in the mix (turning to porridge in this dismal rain). I suspect, though I have no evidence as yet that different birds prefer diffent elements of the mix. The net result is a lot of seed in the tray and the birds ignore the spilled grain in favour of the food in the feeder. Why dont they take the easy option and take the food of their choice from the tray?

[mkdon]

The most popular feed in my yard is a mix of black oil sunflower, striped sunflower, and safflower. Straight black oil is also popular. The main users are cardinals, titmice, chickadees, house finches, and a few nuthatch visitors. The peanut feeder gets woodpeckers, nuthatches, titmice, chickadees, and sparrows. The titmice and chickadees prefer the sunflower.
The woodpeckers visit only the peanut feeder. The house sparrows use it but it takes so long for them to get anything that I am glad to have them stay there.

[seb_seb]

excuse my non-knowledge of american birds...but what is the difference between a titmouse and a chickadee?

[columbidae]

The peanuts that I put out are eaten mostly by the tufted titmice, and some by the brown-headed nuthatches and the chickadees. Sunflower seeds are eaten by almost everyone and go more quickly. The woodpeckers don't go for the peanuts much, but I think that's because I also usually have peanut-flavored suet nearby, which they are mad about.

Seb, the titmice and chickadees are closely related. The titmice are slightly larger, gray and white, with a crested head. The chickadees are smaller and rounder, with no crest, and have a black or brown "mask" on the face. Titmice have the biggest, roundest eyes you have ever seen.

[Vogelman]

Black Oil Sunflower seeds go extremely quickly and are enjoyed by all in my yard!! A suet with nuts is very popular with the woodpeckers too. Even the safflower seeds have takers.

Vogelman

[seb_seb]

ive seen bigger(lol).........owl..and maybe goldcrest for its size

[mkdon]

Hi seb seb,
I have attached a picture of a tufted titmouse and I will post one of a black-capped chickadee next. Both are birds of the forest and come readily to feeders. I have a picture in the gallery of a titmouse sitting on my foot.

[mkdon]

seb,
Here is the photograph of the black-capped chickadee.

[seb_seb]

thanks for the photos... the chickadee looks very similar to some of our tits. but that titmouse looks quite stunning, and those are some big eyes!

[Blackbird]

The birds in my back garden cant get enough of the sunflower seeds. I'm going to have to get a larger seed feeder.

[mcdowella]

Sunflower seeds - but feeder type and location also plays a part. I have two different sunflower seed feeders and a peanuts in wire feeder. The RSPB sunflower seed feeder is champion but it has the largest lead when hung under a tree, not on the washing line (I keep moving them around for interest, and for bird hygiene).

[bristolbirder]

My peanut feeder is largely ignored by my garden birds, preferring the seed feeder and the spillage underneath. At the moment I have plenty of Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Bullfinch and Goldfinch along with Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Great Tit and Magpie.

Do most people find that, given the choice, most birds prefer seeds (especially black sunflower) to peanuts?

[Doug]

Definitley sunflower hearts and sunflower seeds here - I have to keep throwing peanuts away as they start to go off - no birds are interested in them here. We had our first ever pair of Bullfinches in the garden 2 days ago and they stuffed themselves with the hearts and lack sunflower seeds. here's hoping they return - but I doubt it. I also have a Niger seed feeder for the Goldfinches but they spend more time on the sunflower hearts these days too.

[Euan Buchan]

I mainly put out Peanuts on my feeder and they go away very quickly, Now ive ran out of peanuts so I aked my mum 2 get some

[seb_seb]

to bristol birder- not always only seed eating ones!lol but birds that rarely eat seeds..in my garden..love to scoff on the crushed peanuts: blackbirds, robins,dunnocks,song thrush, wren and even a goldcrest:)

[Toucha kent]

mostly the cardinals eat the sunflower seeds. Sometimes I buy the bird feed with cherries and almonds. It doesnt seem to matter that much to them as long as they have feed out to eat.

[Andy Bright]

It's a close run thing in my garden at the moment.... the large number of Siskins (15+) are getting through the peanuts at about the same rate as the Goldfinches (20-30 birds) are getting through the seed (huskfree sunflower/peanut granules).
Most of te time it's the seed that goes quicker.
There is some exchange, some Goldfinches go on the nuts and some Siskins go on the seed feeders.
Andy

[Screech]

Here in NJ, it's sunflower that's popular today, Cardinals, House Finch, WB Nuthatch.
The woodpeckers come in every now and then for sunflower but prefer their peanuts from the hanging feeder.
More falling snow today had the feeders busy!

[columbidae]

Sunflower seeds go faster here, but the tufted titmice really like the peanuts. I put out a handful each day of shelled peanuts on a hanging tray.

[MikePearson]

The marauding greenfinch, starling and sparrow flock are costing me around £2.50 a week on the main feeder! The nice thing is that a couple have blue tits are coming to the window feeder and have set up home in the box I put up last Suday. I made it it in half an hour, screwed it to the wall and 30 mins later the pair of bt's were pulling out the moss from my lawn and moving in. The sparrow terrace I built and put up 2 days befor has not attracted any birds as yet.

:t:

[Doug]

I buy cheap sultanas from ASDA and it has attracted a pair of Mistle Thrushes in to ground feed in our garden - they hoover them up!!! Exquisite birds...

[Doug Lloyd]

Very strange winter in our part of Alaska and very few birds. The chickadees throw the peanuts out of the tray to get at the hulled sunflower seeds. We have a few pine siskins that spend their time on the thistle socks. The RB nuthatches stop on the suet balls a couple times a day. We have no redpolls this winter. At this time last year we would have 3-4 hundred out there all day. On a year round basis Black oilers are the most popular with our birds.
Doug

[christineredgate]

About equal.I am saving a small fortune on the de husked seed at the moment,as I am only putting seed in the squirrel proof feeders.The Sparrows and Chaffinches fly in and out quite happily,as opposed to the Starlings who would scatter the stuff all over the place and lots was wasted.The Starlings are kept very happy squabbling over fat balls and suet blocks,and the nut feeder is well used by both Sparrows and Starlings.The Jackdaws feed from a tray of mixed seed and sultanas,but only when there are no Pidgeons in view.Local people can be quite adamant re bird feeding where the latter are concerned.I have purchased a childs mini gun into which one inserts caps(I think they are called) I fire these caps outside the door when the Pidgeons are raiding the tray of food,and it does keep them away for a while.The other birds do not seem to bother,fly off,but return instantly,but not the Pidgeons.

[Elizabeth Bigg]

I have purchased a childs mini gun into which one inserts caps(I think they are called) I fire these caps outside the door when the Pidgeons are raiding the tray of food,and it does keep them away for a while.The other birds do not seem to bother,fly off,but return instantly,but not the Pidgeons.

You've certainly woken up an old thread here Christine! I'm interested in the cap gun - I didn't realise you could still get such things. In the spring a magpie was attacking a blackbird's nest in an oak tree on our side boundary. It's in our neighbours garden, and when I went out to find out what the racket was, she was attempting to scare off the magpies by clapping her hands - I joined in but it didn't help, and I think the nest was robbed. A cap gun would have been very useful - I bet that would have scared them off, though probably only temporarily. I'm now saving some of the packaging that came with something we bought recently - super giant sized bubble wrap type of stuff. When you stamp on one of the "bubbles" it makes a good bang - but I'd rather have a cap gun!

[christineredgate]

You've certainly woken up an old thread here Christine! I'm interested in the cap gun - I didn't realise you could still get such things. have a cap gun!
Elizabeth,I bought it from our local village shop which stocks a large selection of childrens cheap toys.The caps are not very good as the gunpowder(or whatever )tends to fall out as ones tries to insert the rings into the gun.The gun cost 99p and little tubs of caps cost 64p each.I think there are around 100 in each tub.But as soon as Barry has recovered(he fell off his tractor yesterday,and has sprained knee ligaments) I am going to go to a larger toy shop,and by something a little larger.My neighbours think it is hilarious,as I had to tell them what I was doing.Seeing or hearing an over 60yrs outside banging a toy pistol!!.But it does seem to work.Albeit the Pigeons do eventually return.

[GrahamR]

Peanuts seem to be going down very nicely here at the moment with the greenfinches, blue tits, coal tits and sparrows, whereas there are only greenfinches and sparrows on the sunflower hearts.

[tifoso]

About equal.
That is my experience as well. I keep a small amount of hulled peanuts and peanuts in the shell in a wire feeder. I don't fill it up because peanuts get moldy pretty quickly in damp weather. And I keep shelled black oil sunflower in a tray feeder. Titmice, chickadees, nuthatches, and downy woodpecker go to both equally. The Carolina wrens and cardinals seems to prefer the sunflower and the blue jays the peanuts.

I also keep suet out; it's a "woodpecker" mix, with lots of black oil sunflower seeds. The downy woodpeckers love it as well as red headed woodpeckers. And I keep a thistle tube feeder. This attracts the chickadees and the titmice in addition to a variety of finches.

I used to put safflower out, but our squirrels like it so I went back to sunflower. I just bought a large hole tube feeder for black oil sunflower seeds and am thinking of putting the safflower back in the tray feeder.

[prairiemerlin]

I normally put out a shellless mix. (Hulled millet, sunflower hearts and shelled peanuts) The juncos and other ground feeders always go for the millet. The finches and chickadees take the sunflower, and the woodpeckers take the peanuts. However, if there is suet and niger out, the goldfinches abondone the sunflowers and the woodpecker abandone the peanuts.

However, I am going to put out black-oilers this year because I've noticed a decline in the cardinals and Bluejays.

[Charles Harper]

Never tried peanuts-- I like them too much myself to waste them on the birds. Sunflowers seeds sell like hotcakes, though. Great Tits, Brown-eared Bulbuls and Rufous Turtle Doves account for them all.

[helenol]

. Sunflowers seeds sell like hotcakes, though..
I´m with Charles on this. Although I have recently put out peanuts -seem to be doing ok - but it is the sunflower seeds that get ´em going.

[Bluetail]

Peanuts are a waste of time and money in my garden (I've tried them). But sunflower hearts go down almost as quick as my bank account.

[lozza_9]

Sunflowers are more popular in my garden than peanuts.

My try putting the peanuts in a food mixer and making peanut nips and placing on my table.

Don't want the peanuts to go to waste.

Lozza

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Sunflowers are more popular in my garden than peanuts.

My try putting the peanuts in a food mixer and making peanut nips and placing on my table.

Don't want the peanuts to go to waste.

Lozza

You could make suet "treats" (either blocks or balls) with chopped peanuts and other things mixed in - I add porridge oats, sunflower hearts, raisins and chopped peanuts to melted suet in the ratio of 1½:1. I make two suet blocks using 250g suet and 375g of the other ingedients. The bluetits get through one of these in 2 to 3 days - with a bit of help from sparrows, robins and great tits.

[rogerscoth]

We feed Peanuts and Sunflower Hearts all year. One small wire-mesh feeder for Peanuts, and one (increased to two in winter) plastic feeder for Sunflower Hearts.

Roger

[Sion]

Pretty equal here too. We have three large peanut feeders, and have to refill every two or three days - blue, coal, long tailed and great tits on them all the time, along with greenfinches, greater spotted woodpeckers and nuthatches amongst others. Mixed seed flies out of the dispenser, mainly because the nuthatches throw more out than they eat. Chaffinches seem to prefer feeding on the ground.

The robins here prefer fat balls (mainly because we haven't brought out the main table yet this year, I think), and the blackbirds sometimes hang on to those dispensers too, pecking at the fat balls.

[W.coast Raptor]

black oil sunflower seeds and sunflower chips here on the west coast. 60+ species yr round.

also nyjer, millet, different types of suet and H2o

[W.coast Raptor]

Peanuts are a waste of time and money in my garden (I've tried them). But sunflower hearts go down almost as quick as my bank account.


YES !!! my monthly feeding bills went from 10$ a month to 100$ a month, now that the migrants have arrived in force.

[nick scarle]

Loose peanuts disappear just as quickly as sunflower hearts but the nuts in the mesh feeder are completely ignored - dunno why.

[Jos Stratford]

Ditto to many of the posts above - have four sunflower feeders and ALL are empty by late afternoon, totalling over a kg a day. Also have about ten peanut feeder and they keep the birds going the rest of the day.

In short both nuts and sunflowers very popular, but problem with sunflowers is they disappear too quickly and leave nought to eat later in the day ...plu cost twice as much!

[snowyowl]

I feed peanuts in a metal, mesh feeder and the woodpeckers, chickadees and nuthatches go for them. They can't carry away the whole nut but can peck at them through the mesh very much as they do with suet. Other species also go for the peanuts but not to the same extent.
I've really cut back on the variety of feed this year. Now I'm feeding BOS, cracked corn, niger and suet. I haven't been able to get peanuts yet this year but they should be at the store today. The store people have promised to put a bag aside for me.
I discontinued feeding GS Sunflower seeds, Safflower (really only a favourite with Cardinals which are uncommon here), millet, both red and white, and a mixed feed. I might go back to the mix but but a very high quality one without filler. It's expensive but seemed popular.

[Kendal]

Peanuts go first as I have lots of Blue Jays, chipmunks, and squirrels. They love the sunflower seeds too, but they come in second.

The Blue Jays have actually begun tapping at the door and peeking in bedroom windows looking for the first morning fill up.

[Bluetail]

Loose peanuts disappear just as quickly as sunflower hearts but the nuts in the mesh feeder are completely ignored - dunno why.In my garden that would be because rodents are taking them!

[P cliffe]

I have four peanut feeders, 2 sunflower hearts feeders and 3 mixed seed feeders plus 2 niger feeders. On the table I have just mixed seed and on the ground I have a no grow mixture. put all these along with fat balls and fat feasts and tipbits my gardens always full of birds. The foods eaten at a pretty even rate
Phil

[Tom Moodie]

Sunflower hearts in 2 feeders refilled almost daily. Peanut feeder refilled once every few weeks unless out of sunflower. Fatballs eaten rapidly during winter but still lasting a few weeks at this time of year.
Tom

[Sambrose]

In all the feeders, even for the squirrels. The sunflower seed brings the house finches, house sparrows, 2 kinds of chickadees, nuthatches, band-tailed pigeons and a kinglet or two. Suet for the flickers and woodpeckers (and chickadees and nuthatches...) When the robins and Varied Thrushes finish off the berries on the Mountain Ash trees, they will get fruit. I save the peanuts for the Stellar Jays, my favorite handsome guys.

[lyngeb]

I use the black oil sunflower seeds. The sunflower seeds are most popular with my finches.

[RockyRacoon]

Peanuts, the squirrels eat them all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :C

[julien]

Sunflower seeds are the favourites of the Sulphur Crested, the Rainbow Lorikeet, the Crimson Rosella and any stray sparrow, Dove or Bronzewing.
I have never heard of giving peanuts, I give them to my husband when he has a beer.

[Elizabeth Bigg]

Peanuts, the squirrels eat them all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :C

Put them where the squirrels can't get them!

[Marianne Reid]

I for sure choose Sunflower over peanuts. Though I do put our peanuts for the Blue Jays. Also I find that Black Oil Sunflower seed better than Striped..Black Oil is smaller and more can go into the feeder...Striped is mostly shell! LOL Cardinals come like crazy to the sunflower!!

[Sambrose]

Put them where the squirrels can't get them!
And where is that?? Squirrels can get into ANYthing!

[Elizabeth Bigg]

And where is that?? Squirrels can get into ANYthing!

Maybe our squirrels are not as smart as yours! In the left hand picture (in the background) is a pole feeder system and also a bird table, each fitted with a baffle. In 14 years no squirrels have managed to get onto them - though they have been positioned in such a way that there are no nearby trees or shrubs from which they can jump. In the foreground is a pole system installed just over a year ago - squirrels have not (so far) got round the seed tray.

Other feeders that we have are like the right hand picture - squirrels can get onto these, and reach inside (juvenile squirrels can get right inside), but they seem unable to get much food, so don't bother to try after a while.

[Sambrose]

Maybe our squirrels are not as smart as yours! In the left hand picture (in the background) is a pole feeder system and also a bird table, each fitted with a baffle. In 14 years no squirrels have managed to get onto them - though they have been positioned in such a way that there are no nearby trees or shrubs from which they can jump. In the foreground is a pole system installed just over a year ago - squirrels have not (so far) got round the seed tray.

Other feeders that we have are like the right hand picture - squirrels can get onto these, and reach inside (juvenile squirrels can get right inside), but they seem unable to get much food, so don't bother to try after a while.

NICE feeding stations; thanks for the pointers...guess I just haven't tried hard enough!

[Mary Evelyn]

The Black Sunflower certainly brought in the Finch Family. Nuts do well too Crushing the nuts (although it wears me out) goes down like magic.
Ann Chaplin ,e-mailed me to buy a cheap blender and I certainly will.
The same with the fat balls - I have to crumble them up and they go quickly but hung out whole - This cold weather -too much hard work for the birds in my garden. o:)

[LSB]

The Black Sunflower certainly brought in the Finch Family. Nuts do well too Crushing the nuts (although it wears me out) goes down like magic.
Ann Chaplin ,e-mailed me to buy a cheap blender and I certainly will.
The same with the fat balls - I have to crumble them up and they go quickly but hung out whole - This cold weather -too much hard work for the birds in my garden. o:)



Try crushing your peanuts in an old sock with a hammer or other heavey object, until you get your blender. That way the nuts dont fly all over the place as you whack them..

[Mary Evelyn]

Try crushing your peanuts in an old sock with a hammer or other heavey object, until you get your blender. That way the nuts dont fly all over the place as you whack them..
Today, I placed them in a heavy plastic bag and walked all over them with my 3 inch platforms ha ha o:) Worked a treat.All ready for in the morn. :clap:
Thankyou for the tip though. o:)

[jneville]

The Peanuts!! There are 2 pair of Blue Jays that take every peanut(in shell) within an hour. They carry them off one by one. A titmouse will take one every now and then.
Overall, with all birds included it would be the black oil sunflower.

jneville

[luke]

Peanuts,
at my place of work, we've just put up 10 feeders 5 peanut and 5 seed. theres alot more activity on the peanuts and more variety on them. but they have only been up a couple of days, so it will be interesting to see which the birds choose

[christineredgate]

I have been making large fat trays of melted dripping with sultanas and chopped nuts.I then cut up into small pieces,which I put into the tray along with the bird seed,bread and sultanas.The latter are definitely the most popular.

[Mary Evelyn]

I have been making large fat trays of melted dripping with sultanas and chopped nuts.I then cut up into small pieces,which I put into the tray along with the bird seed,bread and sultanas.The latter are definitely the most popular.

And so tasty too.

I totaly agree and chopped nuts work better for me everytime.If I put the nuts out whole in the feeders they slow down but chopped they go like magic.
I am now in the habit of chopping them all the time to ensure nothing chokes come spring.

[adrianf]

I'm in the 90% sunflowers/10% peanuts category. But whenever I've put peanuts in the seed feeders they dissappear quickly. Perhaps it's mainly a matter of whichever is easiest to pick up - the mesh peanut feeders are too much like hard work.

[Stu-Silver]

Its sunflower hearts and nothing else in my garden. Peanuts just go rock hard and black because the birds never touch them. Fat balls, suet cakes etc are never touched and I also end up throwing them away. I know that this has something to do with location, as my neighbour has a peanut feeder less than 10 yds away from my feeders and it always has a greenfinch, or a member of the tit family on it. This was also the case when he put out a suet cake in a very similar location.

[SRE]

We put out five feeders - black oil sunflower, niger, peanuts (in metal cage with holes) suet (peanut butter) and a platform for peanuts. The Blue Jays eat from the platform - taking huge mouthfuls - 7 nuts at a time! while we get chickadees, white and red breasted nuthatches, hairy and downy woodpeckers, purple and gold finches at everything else - the black squirrels are definitely nuisance -so the feeders are hung from a very fine steel wire strung between 2 trees that I frequently coat with olive oil!
I fill all feeders,with the exception of the suet, every weekend.

[Marian James]

oops! Sorry I did not intend to vote twice! Must be a 'senior' moment

[Talon 1]

My peanut feeder is largely ignored by my garden birds, preferring the seed feeder and the spillage underneath. At the moment I have plenty of Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Bullfinch and Goldfinch along with Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Blackbird, Blue Tit, Great Tit and Magpie.

Do most people find that, given the choice, most birds prefer seeds (especially black sunflower) to peanuts?


Yes i Do too. Infact they ignore the Niger and Peanut and just go for the General Mix.The sunflower gets hit on but not as much as the general stuff.

I have now ground the peanut up and put it in a perspex box with a 1 inch hole just to see whether the tits and robins and wrens will have a go.

[gareth2005]

My Greenfinches seem to prefer the peanuts whhile the sparrows seem to prefer the sunflower seeds.
If I put out general mix I get more birds like Doves and dozens of Starlings but they just seems to throws the seed about the place and pick what they want. It makes a huge mess !

[Tia Maria]

I can't really choose at the moment because I grind the peanuts in Summer and they go down well.I also find the Blacksunflower is popular too.I don't use whole peanuts at all in the breeding season but weight for weight there is nothing in it here. :bounce:

[Garden_birder]

which goes quicker/is most popular with birds in your garden?


Sunflower seeds go faster than Peanuts in my garden.

[Tim42]

:flyaway: I have mixed seeds in two feeders and peanuts in another. So far the mixed is going quicker, but I think because the birds don't really like the millet seed which dominates the mixed feeders. Today I bought black-oil sunflower seeds and mixed it with the rest. Sunflower seeds are most popular this time of year I think. I can't forget my suet feeder, it's popular also. Happy birding! :flyaway:

[Silvershark]

Sunflower seeds easily, the only small birds won't touch peanuts at all! They weren't even keen on peanut granules!

[Renee Redstart]

Sunflower hearts win the day, always snaffled very quickly by most birds. There are 'peanut periods', just now they are popular, but funnily enough not many are eaten in winter. Crushed peanuts go down well, and in winter I add crushed and ground peanuts to lard for fat cakes and these are popular.

[Andy Bright]

I still persevere with the peanuts, if only for the G-S Woodpeckers and any Siskins in the winter... other than that it's huskfree seed mix in the feeders, sunflower based table mix and Nijer for the Goldfinches (and a prayer that a Redpoll will take a fancy to them)

[Susy]

How times change. Once the birds that came to my feeders were happy with peanuts. Now they are largely ignored and black sunflowers or hulled (separate feeder) are preferred. Nyjers are favoured by bullfinches, goldfinches, siskins and redpolls (occasional winter/spring visitors). I try to keep a small amount of fresh peanuts in a feeder for visiting woodpeckers and nuthatches although the latter are very happy here with black sunflowers. The fallen sunflower seed is hoovered up by finches, blackbirds and robins with the tits liking the sunflowers but occasionally taking peanuts.

[catwhiskas]

I am new to this. Actually I am on my very first bag of birdseed. I bought a nut and berry mix. It seems in the 2 times I have refilled the feeder now, I have noticed in the tray below what they have discarded is the fruit and the peanuts. It seems they are only eating the sunflower seeds...Do they not like the rest???

[Radarjet]

Peanuts are only toyed with seemingly as a token gesture but still worth keeping out

Mixed seed goes quickest with sunflower seed not far behind.

Oats/fruit mix is also very popular.

Nyger seed goes too and fat balls are always popular.

[Hindolbittern]

Sunflower seeds. I got fed up of the black ones as the husks were constantly getting in the house, my shoes the bed everywhere! So for the sake of sanity I buy sunflower hearts now.

Goldfinches will go between niger seed and sunflower seed and I keep some peanuts out in the winter for the woodpecker and for emergency purposes when they've got through all the sunflower seeds before I manage to re-fill.

I can buy sunflower hearts at £20 for 20kg at the seed merchants (which doesn't last very long) but I am aware that they are from the States so the food miles on them is apalling and also I bet they are GM.

I think I'm going to have to see if I can source UK ones. Any ideas?

[Don Hoey]

Sunflower hearts only here. Currently about 1Kg a day. In feeders and on the ground. Lots of birds though. Whenever I go between the house and workshop I am expected to throw them a fresh handful.

[Richard Bryce]

Sunflower hearts wins hands down in tubes and on the table. White Millet is also popular amongst smaller birds. Adult Goldfinches prefer nyjer whilst their juveniles prefer the SF hearts. Peanuts attract a few Starlings occassionally, the hedgehog loves them.

I still scatter a cheap Johnson and Jeff mix on my shed roof, which doves, pigeons, starlings, sparrows and chaffinches devour . There's little wheat or corn and no grass seeds in it. I add cheap sultanas and raisins.

Good experimental research findings on the relative attractiveness of seeds here:

http://www.wildbirdcenter.com/content/geis

[peterpiper]

in my garden peanuts and sunflower hearts are eqally popular, but fat balls are most popular by far

[C. Crabb]

""my homemade suet, How do you make it? I've tried only one method and couldn't make it work. Many thanks.
C. Crabb

[Eider-Duck]

The birds in my garden eat sunflower hearts, mixed seeds and fat balls with equal enthusiasm but, generally dont touch the peanuts until they have scoffed everything else.

[Matt_L]

Sunflower seeds get eaten the fastest in my garden because so many different birds like them. The peanuts are very popular with the blue tits, sparrows and starlings but they always last longer between refills than the seeds.

[Thelma W.]

which goes quicker/is most popular with birds in your garden?

After three years of daily feeding, there is no doubt in my mind that sunflower seeds are tops! Eaten by almost all the birds, and by the grey squirrels, foxes and badgers too. Even the cats appear to be getting a taste for them?!

I have just looked at the Poll so far, and it seems the end result might be resoundingly in favour of SF seeds.

[Euan Buchan]

Wrll last weekend I got a twin feeder were you put peanuts on one side & seeds the other it's been a week now and the birds have just been feeding on the peanuts side ignoring the seeds.

[Thelma W.]

Wrll last weekend I got a twin feeder were you put peanuts on one side & seeds the other it's been a week now and the birds have just been feeding on the peanuts side ignoring the seeds.

Were they sunflower hearts or seeds or something else? Their favourites are the hearts. Hang in there, it might depend which birds you are getting.

[JeffMoh]

Most of our birds greatly prefer sunflower seeds to peanuts. However, the latter are a hit with our Blue Jays and get some attention from the Tufted Titmice and Red-bellied Woodpeckers.

We recently stopped putting out peanuts because the mesh tube got absolutely smothered in leaf-footed bugs. But now that fall is here, I may try the peanuts again.

[deborah4]

Ive noticed the blue tits like the peanuts but that's probably because the greenfinches are hogging all the seed feeders! Leftover manky peanuts get fed to the squirrels (well its a tough job but someones got to do it) and the greenfinches discard some of the feed mix which provides ground food for the collar doves and a great selection of weed growth in the patio!

[GDC]

Sunflowers mixed with safflowers are in my feeders. I have 2 suet feeders also. I put 2 finch feeders out also. I have heard that cardinals will take the safflowers over the sunflowers. I don't know if it is true, but I try to give all of them their choice
www.wrmn.net

[Squirrel]

How can you view the results of the poll?

[Mad_BMS]

How can you view the results of the poll?
Results are at top of the page squirrel.

[Drean Mollagh]

Sunflower seed is the more popular, but the peanuts go too - tits, greenfinch, house sparrows and others. Some individuals do seem to have a particular liking for the peanuts, so I still stock up with both.

[monkshood]

I get through a plastic feeder of sunflower seeds ..and a small mixed seed feeder a day ..peanuts hardly touched.

[Squirrel]

Results are at top of the page squirrel.

Not on my page they're not. :h?:

I've checked all the settings and display options in my profile etc. At the top of this thread I'm only seeing the Poll Options panel... are poll results only displayed to those who have voted? I haven't voted (because it's not a simple answer in my garden, too many variables, maybe I'm over-analyzing!), so does this mean I'm not allowed to see the results? :-C

Using Safari on a mac btw, but that's never caused any other problems with BF.

Thanks anyway Tom. ;)

[gi2012]

At home I have two peanut feeders and a seed feeder and a suet/seed feeder that is suitable for robins etc.

The birds definitely prefer the seed feeder with the peanuts only getting eaten if the seed feeder is out, the birds were not keen on the suet/seed feed so this I've spread on the table where the woodpigeons and starlings eat it up.

At work I recently put up some food - it was a mixed pack bought from Aldi's that was ok'd by the BTO and included fat balls, peanut feeder and a seed feeder - just as I walked away from putting them up the first time a robin and a great tit flew in. The peanuts and seed have gone really quickly.

It's strange how at work the peanuts get eaten quickly but not at home.

Gi

[phil.walton3]

I've been feeding for quite a few years and my experience is that the following work, in order of popularity
1) Sunflower Hearts - everything!!!
2) Soft Bill Food, including fruit - Blackbirds and Robins
3) Nijer Seed - Gold and Greenfinch and Siskin exclusively
4) Apples - Blackbirds and Robins
5) Peanuts - only when nothing else available - but great for GSW and Nuthatch
6) Fat balls and slabs - tits from time to time and starlings

I have great trouble with squirrels and they have forced me to use metal cages round the feeders. Whilst this has dramatically cut the amount eaten, without a loss of small bird numbers, it has reduced the amount of ground spillage so I have noticed less wood pigeon, stock dove and collared dove this year. Also the GSW has not been visiting.

Any suggestions on defeating squirrels without dissuading large birds would be welcome.

[GDC]

I have always fed the sunflowers and safflowers mixed together and would like to put some peanuts out. What is the best way to put out peanuts in the shell?

[tirc83]

What UK chains are good value for buying loose bird seed?

Regards
Gary

[terryeyre]

a large feeder filled with sunflower seeds or hearts will be empty in one day,mostly by nuthatch and coal tits who keep coming back after hiding or burying them,the same size feeder filled with peanuts will last 5-6 days

[terryeyre]

What UK chains are good value for buying loose bird seed?

Regards
Gary
i find pet shops the best for peanuts, the last 25 kg sack of peanuts cost me £16,works out much cheaper buying them like that if you use alot.

[Frogbad]

I am using mixed bird seed in one feeder, Nuts in another feeder, Suet slabs in a square feeder, and black sunflower in another feeder.

Order of preference is:-
Sunflower
Suet
Seed
Nuts

[maelef]

Peanuts go in a flash at my feeders. Usually the stellars jays and chickadee's gobble them up, that is if mr. squirrel hasn't gotten to them first. But sunflower, with all the rest of the birds are their favorite. Not getting any birds now at my feeders, they've been gone for a week now, but during busy times, i have to fill all seven feeders on a daily basis.



btw.....phil.walton3.........i've come to the conclusion you can't succesfully defeat squirrels. believe me i've tried. The best solution i've come up with is to give them what the want in their own feeder, a bit seperated from the bird feeders, and they pretty much aren't a problem. They still occassionally investigate to see if they can find something exciting, but it doesn't spook the birds.


if anyone else has come up with something better, please let us in on your secret, i'd love to know.


Also, one funny sidenote........i've actually caught my stellars jay "buzzing" the squirrel when he was taking all the peanuts. he started squaking, then flew in right above squirrels head. Squirrel looked up for a moment, then resumed eating.

[cayoncreekman]

We start off the season with huge bags of various seeds. The redpolls have stayed around this season and with since the return of light they have gone through a lot of nyger (maybe 1 to 2 thousand birds visiting their nyger buffet each day)). The feeding birds themselves are 'feeders' for the owls, gyrfalcons, martins and weasels.

Sunflower or peanuts? Definitely peanuts. This time of year peanuts are gone almost as soon as we put them out. We use dozens of small feeders and different size openings to make sure most the birds get their share. The various corvids prefer peanuts in the shell.

I assume the seeds in a shell (sunflowlower) are stored for the medium to long term whereas peanuts out of the shell are eaten that day or in the short term.

From mid Fall to mid Spring we're rarely without a zip-lock bag of various bird food in our coat pockets. There's no guilt greater than having nothing to offer the forlorn looking chickadee that suddenly appears along a trail and, in contrast, no pleasure greater than having the little fellow excited at being offered a handful of peanut chips.

[cavan wood]

I have great trouble with squirrels and they have forced me to use metal cages round the feeders. Whilst this has dramatically cut the amount eaten, without a loss of small bird numbers, it has reduced the amount of ground spillage so I have noticed less wood pigeon, stock dove and collared dove this year. Also the GSW has not been visiting.

Any suggestions on defeating squirrels without dissuading large birds would be welcome.

The sunflower feeder in the first photo has never been conquered by a squirrel, although they are kept happy by the food spilled by jays and hairy woodpeckers. This feeder gets bluejays, house and purple finches, cardinals, hairy woodpeckers, mourning doves, and all the wee ones. Obviously as that spruce keeps growing, I will have to move the feeder, but if you have a feeder that you absulutely want to keep the squirrels off of , then that's your setup.

The hanging sunflower feeder in photo 2 has been visited rarely by squirrels. The metal openings prevent damage, and the squirrel fell to the ground the last time. It wasn't a happy camper.

My niger feeder hangs from the second story eve trough and was knocked down once by the squirrels in the first week it was up, but nothing since.

The photo in the avatar has obviously been visited, but they don't seem to like millet much and I hardly ever see them there.

The nut feeder has only been up for two weeks. I've never seen the squirrels trying it, but the chickadees and downy woodpeckers are just starting to use it regularly.

Hope that helps
Scott

[Stephen C]

which goes quicker/is most popular with birds in your garden?

Took me ages to get any birds to come to the feeders since I moved into this house (in Spain) but now can't stop 'em. I still haven't found a source of food here so have to bring 'em back in my luggage from the UK. Peanuts all gone (blue tits, crested tits and chaffinches learnt to get them), then they prefer sunflower seeds (over a feeder-full per day) and have now resorted to making food balls out of scraps. Not sure I've got the recipe right yet as they go slowest of all despite high fat content.

Black caps, black birds, black redstarts, robins, sardinian warbler all feed on falling scraps. Firecrest and serin also around but not (yet) on feeders.

Stephen Christopher
www.catalanbirdtours.com

[senatore]

Peanuts have been a disaster in my garden so I have abandoned them.Sunflower hearts are very popular.

Max.

[Paul1853]

Peanuts have been a disaster in my garden so I have abandoned them.Sunflower hearts are very popular.

Max.
Sunflower hearts and Mealworms have been the most successful in my small garden. Tried peanuts, birds would never eat them, they just went mouldy.
Paul

[tigerlillie]

My experience with peanuts is that the squirrels over-power the birds for first dibs. I have a huge squirrel population in my yard....I'm guessing because of the giant oak trees which make for wonderful nesting areas for them. I can't bring myself to rid of them, so I place sunflower seeds away from the bird feeders and place peanuts on the ground around the feeders for the birds, but of course the squirrel always abandon the sunflower seeds and hoard the nuts. Very frustrating because I'm trying to attract different species with the nuts. My favorite is the Eastern Cardinal which LOVE peanuts, but I have no luck, as they refuse to feed along-side the squirrels. Oh well, I never give up on new techniques and I have to keep reminding myself that squirrels have bellies too and if I were to have a choice of ice cream over jello....well that's a no-brainer.

[hayfieldgolfer]

and have now resorted to making food balls out of scraps. Not sure I've got the recipe right yet as they go slowest of all despite high fat content.

Stephen Christopher
www.catalanbirdtours.com

Have a friend who is moving to East Anglia, he wanted a recipe for making fat balls, put a request on the site and found an earlier thread. Most of them use suet rather than fat. Suet has a higher melting point and lasts longer that soft fat.

On saturday made my own fat ball. Chopped peanuts, mixed seed and chopped sultanas mixed with melted suet. Starlings love it, eatern quicker than a commercial prouduct I have had out for over a month.

[maelef]

Not that i'm wish to derail this thread or anything, but how does one add a poll to the thread you start?

[cayoncreekman]

10 out of every 10 species on our property would take a peanut over a sunflower seed.

This thread is a good case how generalties don't always apply and other variables have to be considered. What do most birds do with their peanut or sunflower seed? They cache it somewhere for consumption at a later date. What happens to the cached out-of-the-shell peanut in our arid climate? Not much of anything. The peanut will be as edible 2 weeks from now as it is today. We haven't had more than a half inch of precipitation in 3 months and our air is bone dry. No one here wipes the dishes after they are washed..they air dry in a minute or two. I can take a peanut sored in a hiking pack I haven't used in months and the peanuts taste the same to me (I usually snack along with the birds).

A more humid or damp climate? that same peanut would deteriorate. Some mention moldy peanuts. I've never seen a moldy nut here of any type. Birds are quite adept at storing food and birds selecting sunflowers over peanuts makes sense in a damper climate.

It rains in the UK (an understatement) and rarely rains here. Our English sparrows will always take a peanut bit over a sunflower but maybe back in the UK they prefer sunflowers.

[Home Bird]

Peanuts at my house go very fast--both the titmice and blue jays go after them quickly. In fact, too fast and too expensive for me to afford to keep them out at all times. I also have a major squirrel problem, so have to be very careful about how I offer these. The black oil sunflower seeds get steady traffic and they're my main seed, which I just supplement with peanuts when it's very cold, snowy, or I just feel like it. Titmice will take a whole nut, wedge it in a little fork in a tree, peck the top open, and extract the nut. I have seen them make off with peanuts almost as big as they are. Jays will also take the whole nut, but they're so big, it's not quite so impressive to watch. I use suet containing nuts, so the woodpeckers & nuthatches generally stay with that.

[Home Bird]

btw.....phil.walton3.........i've come to the conclusion you can't succesfully defeat squirrels. believe me i've tried. The best solution i've come up with is to give them what the want in their own feeder, a bit seperated from the bird feeders, and they pretty much aren't a problem. They still occassionally investigate to see if they can find something exciting, but it doesn't spook the birds.


if anyone else has come up with something better, please let us in on your secret, i'd love to know.



I won't pretend that I have defeated the squirrels, but I have found a couple of ways of squirrel proofing individual feeders that do work. One is to hang a feeder from a very high branch by a long piece of kite string (I tied something heavy to the string and threw it over; my daughter got her tree-climbing husband to help). I use this for a log suet feeder, which I attach to the string with a bungie cord. The feeder is above my head--too high for a squirrel to jump to, and they can't climb down the string. I can reach up, pull it down and refill as necessary. The woodpeckers and even some juncos love it. I use a peanutbutter/seed mix on that one. Like you, I also use "diversionary" feeding for squirrels, plus good pole mounted "squirrel proof" feeders. It all helps some, but I don't expect to "win" this battle.

[da2m]

i have 4 feeders in my garden. 2 are mixed seed.1 is peanuta and the last is sunflower hearts anf niger seed. all the action takes place around the later. i have siskins, goldfinches, nuthatches and most of the tits on this. will the mixed seed has sparrow, strling collar doves on.

[oldgiteggy]

I've got 3 peanut and 3 mixed seed feeders. The blue, coal, great and longtailed tits all go for the peanuts (and squirrels), whilst the goldfinches, siskin and greenfinches, empty the seed to get at the sunflower seed. The chuck the wheat, barley, corn etc all over the ground and the chaffinches hover it up. I tried putting in all sunflower seed and it emptied in one day! Thistle seed feeder is still full.

[Dr Hackenbush]

Sunflower kernels go fastest in my garden. One peanut feeder in particular wasn't touched at all, so I've moved it. I emptied one seed feeder out the other day onto the bird table. This was picked over and all that was left was millet. Nothing in my garden seems to go for millet. I have a niger feeder which hasn't attracted any goldfinch (there's a treefull of goldfinches down the road) although I noticed a greenfinch trying it out yesterday. I'm using the no mess mix from BTO in my feeders which attract greenfinches by the load. I also use robin & wren mix which seems to attract wood pigeon as well as the robin. I've also started soaking mealworm for use on the table.

[Mynydd Merlin]

.... I've also started soaking mealworm for use on the table.

Hi Doc - We have tried to locate a source of mealworm locally with little sucess. Do you know of an online resource that can provide this with reasonable expense?

[Lou G]

- We have tried to locate a source of mealworm locally with little sucess. Do you know of an online resource that can provide this with reasonable expense?


Here in the US I get them at sporting good stores that sell live bait for freshwater fishing.

Lou G

[Mary Evelyn]

Peanuts aren't moving at the moment but Black Sunflower and Sunflower Hearts are going down a storm :flyaway:

[timvid]

We used to put sunflower seeds out, but it brought so many starlings and grackles that we switched to safflower. This phased out most of them in just a few days. We got a special peanut feeder for woodpeckers that the starlings can't eat from, or they would be back in droves.

Tim

[Tim42]

We used to put sunflower seeds out, but it brought so many starlings and grackles that we switched to safflower. This phased out most of them in just a few days. We got a special peanut feeder for woodpeckers that the starlings can't eat from, or they would be back in droves.

Tim

Hi Tim, I'm Tim too. I use a mixture of seed, mostly black-oil sunflower seed, tho. I also have a peanut feeder which my woodpeckers, titmice and carolina wrens love. Once in awhile I'll get the 'bully' birds in my yard (blue jays, brown-headed cowbirds, and occasional grackle) but they don't bather me. I like to see how many different species I can attract to my feeders. So far I'm at 33 that ate at or around my feeders. I just can't get enough of them! Happy birding! :flyaway:

[g8ina]

Here in Telford, the peanuts seem to be more recently out of favour and the black sunflowers are getting a tad more attention from blue tits, greenfinches & the odd goldfinch (my dining area is still not widely known).

I also just put a fat feeder spread in "the crack" with crushed peanuts and whole sunflower seeds, with lard and suet. This seems to be going quite well this week. That and the cheese of course !

Fat feed : sparrows, tits, greenfinches, blackbirds, magpies, pigeons, crow, robin, gt spotted woody.

Peanuts : squirrel, gt spotted woody, blu/gt/coal/long tailed tits, sparrows, magpies, blackbirds, robins, pigeons (floor spills only).

Sunflowers : greenfinch, goldfinch, blue tit, gt tit.

Interesting watching how different the finch is to the tits. He will stay on the feeder and eat, but the tits will take a seed into the bush to eat.

The only regular visitor who will NOT take anything from any feeder is the dunnock.

[jimbofoxman]

I solely feed BlackOil and Thistle from my 3 feeders. I have 2 suet feeders that I put both a peanut suet and a variety suet in.

What I usually get: Cardinals, Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Juncos, House Finches, Gold Finches, Nuthatch and occasionally a Blue Jay, but not that many around or that often.

I get downys on the suet and the occasional visit from a Red Bellied Woodpecker.

This May we got White Capped Sparrows in are yard, like rummaging around on the seed droppings on the ground. I haven't noticed them in a while, I suspect they were just passing through on their migration travels. We aren't in their normal ranges.

I thought about putting other seeds out, like safflower or maybe even some peanuts. Peanuts scare me though as I don't want any of those scummy squirrels out there. I'd hate to have to shoot them.

Finally got some bluebirds nesting in a new house for a few weeks now. Thought about putting out a nugget feeder for them.

If I were to fill the Hummingbird feeder, I'd have some of those too. Only seen two Orioles in the 5+ yrs living here. Thought about putting out some fruit feeders for them.

Who knows............wishing I could get a few more varieties here.

[Euan Buchan]

Peanut feeders arn't going to well at the moment the seeds in The Robin Feeder are a right fav at the moment

[Jaff]

The peanuts seem to be getting a bit of bad press here so I would like to defend them.

I confess that the sunflower hearts go a hell of a lot quicker than the peanuts but it's because of this that I think they are valuable.
When the sunflower seeds have run out the birds can still feed on the peanuts and also if the finches are hogging the seed feeders, as they so frequently do, it allows the smaller birds to eat something too.

Unless you're feeding dehusked sunflowers, the peanuts leave a lot less mess aswell. Also the expense, if sunflower seeds are disappearing at the speed of light then you have to keep getting more, and dehusked ones aren't cheap.
I personally have 2 seed feeders with sunflower hearts in, aswell as 3 peanut feeders and wild bird mix for the bird table
and ground to maintain some balance. :bounce:

[g8ina]

If in the UK, try a Wilkinson store, with the Wilko brand. Sunflower hearts £1.25 per kilo, with a 2 for £2 at the moment !

As cheap as some peanuts I buy ;)

[CBB]

If in the UK, try a Wilkinson store, with the Wilko brand. Sunflower hearts £1.25 per kilo, with a 2 for £2 at the moment !

As cheap as some peanuts I buy ;)

Cheers. I never knew Wilkos did stuff like that.

:t:

[r2didi2]

I have 2 of those 4 branched feeder stands (fitted in garden parasol stands so I can move them around easier)! On each of these I have four defender metal seed feeders http://www.birdfood.co.uk/products.php?area_id=2&nav_id=33.

One of the feeder stands contains four defenders filled with Hi-Energy No Mess from CJ Wildbird foods http://www.birdfood.co.uk/product_details.php?area_id=2&group_id=9&nav_id=24&prd_id=234. I have tried the Haith's equivalent product which is cheaper but is not as good quality in my opinion. The annoying thing is at this time of year, the fled starlings nick all the maize and oatmeal but ditch the sunflower hearts all over the floor which ends up seeding if I don't clean it up every few days!

The other feeder stand has 2 x mesh peanut feeders, 1 x sunflower seeds and 1 x fat slabs. The sunflower seeds are eaten quickly and so are the peanuts - by a family of great spotted woodpeckers! I have had to withold the fat feeder slabs for a while - the starlings were using up 2 slabs per day and not letting anyone else get a look in!

I also have 2 x nyja feeders. Interestingly, I have found that they are not being used nearly as much this year by the goldfinches as they were last year. The goldfinches seem quite happy to play on the Hi-Energy No Mess feeders.

I also have 2 ground feeders from http://www.birdfood.co.uk/product_details.php?area_id=2&group_id=10&nav_id=38&prd_id=667, and a concrete slab. One of the groundfeeders and the slab are used to feed CJ's "High-Energy Ground Blend" http://www.birdfood.co.uk/product_details.php?area_id=2&group_id=9&nav_id=24&prd_id=228. The other groundfeeder is used to feed CJ's "Original Table Seed" http://www.birdfood.co.uk/product_details.php?area_id=2&group_id=9&nav_id=24&prd_id=2461

If you want more ground feeding birds in your garden, like yellowhammers, reed buntings, etc., then ground feeders are the thing. Mind you, our reed buntings have actually learnt how to use the hanging feeders!

I don't know what I'd do without the black plastic dustbins that I use to store all this feed in, since I buy 40 Kg sacks at a time! Also, it takes a lot of my time keeping all this stuff clean and hygenic. But the photographic opportunities all these feeders offer have made it very worthwhile.

[Evanji Axu]

My cardinals, blue jays, and *pissed-off sigh* grackles have learned to use my tube feeder.

[mooskibaby]

Well i would say peanuts but the only reason is, is because i once got a woodpecker on the feeders. Sunflower kernels are also liked by the collared doves, starlings and the house sparrows while the peanuts are enjoyed by greenfinches, blue tits, woodpecker, greenfinch, house sparrows, chaffinches and of course the greedy starlings.
Overall i would say the peanuts.

[AC/DC]

Interesting watching how different the finch is to the tits. He will stay on the feeder and eat, but the tits will take a seed into the bush to eat.

.
i noticed that too.

[AC/DC]

watch out for real cheap peanuts, because these could contain aflatoxin, a naturally occuring poison that is 10X more deadly than cyanide. cheaper ones probably havent been stored properly and probably havent been cleaned properly either, increasing the chances of aflatoxin growing. it develops on a blue mould that grows on these poorly kept nuts. it also occurs when left in really humid conditions

[Mary Evelyn]

watch out for real cheap peanuts, because these could contain aflatoxin, a naturally occuring poison that is 10X more deadly than cyanide. cheaper ones probably havent been stored properly and probably havent been cleaned properly either, increasing the chances of aflatoxin growing. it develops on a blue mould that grows on these poorly kept nuts. it also occurs when left in really humid conditions

Hi :hi:
Peanuts that go into the pet retail industry should be safe and tested.The price doesn't always reflect the quality. Store nuts bought in a cool,dry place and there shouldn't be a problem.
Price on the other hand varies considerably.That simply, comes down to the area and how much profit the retailer wishes to make,as the wholesale price is pretty consistant in the North East.Bird food is big business now and there is tremendous competition, so the price has to be right to draw the customers in,more so when there is no passing trade.Grade A nuts are the ones that most wholesalers sell here.Once the nuts are put into feeders outdoors,regardless of price paid, they need to be kept dry,simple as that. :flyaway:

[Transformer]

I have always fed the sunflowers and safflowers mixed together and would like to put some peanuts out. What is the best way to put out peanuts in the shell?
There are feeders specifically for shelled and unshelled peanuts. I am just now considering offering peanuts, though, so i do not have a recommendation as of yet.

[Transformer]

I picked up a bag of shelled peanuts as well as a special woodpecker mix, which the woodpeckers do actually eat! I find these offerings work well in the sunflower seed feeders.

[Kevin Seydlorsky]

Gotta have both.

[Joshua B]

The hanging sunflower feeder in photo 2 has been visited rarely by squirrels. The metal openings prevent damage, and the squirrel fell to the ground the last time. It wasn't a happy camper.

Scott, you have a beautiful property for feeding birds. Can I see a closer shot of this particular feeder?

[AlisonD]

Sunflower hearts seem most popular in my garden. We get Goldfinches, Greenfinches, Tits mostly on them. It's a garden that's fairly sparce on shrubbery and trees and we've only been here a few months, will be interesting to see what we attract in winter from the nearby forest!

[do re meep meep]

I got a free, filled peanut feeder from Wild Birds Unlimited when I spent more than $20 at their store. The birds love the peanuts, but I first could not figure out what kind of peanuts it was, there is no such kind of peanuts in pet or wild bird food stores! I finally went to a health food store for ***humans*** and it was ***Virginia peanuts, blanched, roasted, unsalted*** Delicious for me too, I must say!

[flippsy]

The only regular visitor who will NOT take anything from any feeder is the dunnock.
We have a dunnock and it seems to ground feed - I have been scattering "robin food" around and it seems to be quite happy with that! It's not interested in the sunflower seeds or fat balls.

[nick the grief]

I feed with both and the sunflower Hearts disappear like a disappearing thing! The peanuts usually last a couple f weeks but the sunflowers a couple of days!!

[Bronwyn]

Definitely black oil sunflower seeds are the meal du jour for my visitors. The blue jays, black-capped chickadees, american goldfinches, evening grosbeaks, house and purple finches gobble them up. My juncos just sit on the ground and eat what falls out. When I lived in northern British Columbia I had juncos on my feeder, here in Nova Scotia they never go on them, they just forage on the ground. I have finch feeders as well for niger seed. And a suet basket for my woodpeckers and white-breasted nuthatchs and chickadees. Of course, the squirrels like to show up too and tease my dog mercilessly. I've never tried just peanuts, my bird food has some in it, but not in great quantity. Maybe I should try peanuts in the shell?

[steveo]

I'm sure this has been said but comparing these two is like comparing apples and oranges. You must have both as well as suet and thisle seed for a well rounded set up.

[kittykat23uk]

All the birds round here prefer sunflower seed. I have tried peanuts but they don't ever get eaten unless they are mixed in with other seed.

[jimibird]

I am having that problem right now, no interest in the peanuts at all but the sunflower seeds are popular.

[Peewit]

I think Sunflower seeds go here, very quickly. Mind you, I never had any trouble with Grey Squirrels before I moved where I am now. So now I have a Squirrel proof nut feeder. The seed feeder is a normal feeder, and I have placed my feeders on a make shift washing line with movable plastic bottles attached, so the Squirrels cannot reach the feeders. Great deterrent too.

I add some nuts to my ground feeder, and mash them into small pieces (as a deterrent to the squirrels) as they seem to like picking up whole nuts (I hope)

In the cottage I lived in before I was filling 4 nut feeders every day, all year, and they where the ordinary mesh feeders. All birds, including GW Woodpeckers used them a lot.
If you asked me the same question while I resided in my cottage, I would have said nuts (in the polite way of course LOL 3:-))

I wonder if the smaller birds are put off with the Squirrel proof nut feeder where we are now?

Regards
Kathy

[Fast_falkon]

Sunflower seeds here :)
i trew a handfull in the yard and a couple of hours later (5 or so) it was all gone.
The chaffinch and the house/tree sparrow LOVE them

[Mike Cook]

Sunflower seeds in here Newcastle. The exception seems to be our Siskins. They go for either nyjer seeds or peanuts. I don't usually see them on the sunflower seeds. Possibly also Long-tailed tits. Other than that, they all wolf down the sunflower seed.

Mike:t:

[tonyath]

I have both in my garden and they get eaten at about the same rate.

The greenfinches perch on the sunflower seed feeder, and for every seed they eat they throw 4 on the floor.

Blue, great and coal tits eat both, sometimes collect a peanut from the feeder move to a shrub to eat it the return to the other feeder for a sunflower seed. I have watched them alternate between feeders for 5 minutes.

The goldfinches seem to prefer sunflower seeds to nyjer seeds.

[Peewit]

Hi there

I forgot to mention that my Goldfinches love Nyger seeds. They live on the Nyger seed feeder perches, and that is all that they want to eat. I had this in my last property too. Goldies are into Nyger seeds in a big way. I have seen them eat natural thistle seeds at one of my properties too, and that is the natural food source that they want to eat. Great to see thme do this too.

The finches Greenies and Chaffies, all love the mixed seeds as they are easy to get to. They like the ground feeders as well as the hung ones.

Not had Siskens so far where I am now, but I did in my last property, and they loved Nyger seed in general too.

Robins love the ground feeder here, and all the seeds that they can get. In my last place the Robins would sit on the hung fat ball feeder and eat that way.
Now I crumble fat balls into the ground feeder to stop the Squirrels from eating them in one sitting.

Regards
Kathy

[chaderz911]

I use both sunflower feeders and peanut feeders. I had to stop using the "standard" type of peanut feeder that allows the birds to cling to the mesh and pick through since the Starlings quickly figured it out! I purchased a small feeder at Wild Birds Unlimited called "Clingers Only" and now use it with a mixture of Walnuts and peanuts. The Starlings attempt it from time to time but they can't get to much at once so it doesn't go as fast.

[Corvus Corax]

Found by trial and error that, whilst sunflower seeds do go much quicker than peanuts, my peanut feeders are only visited if sited in our enclosed back garden. Seed feeders get a bashing front or rear garden.

Strangely fat balls do not get touched irrespective of where I hang them.

[skatebirder]

I put a fat/oats/seed mixture out last week for the first time, and within a couple of days a female Blackcap was regularly visiting it (along with Blackbirds and a Robin). Sunflower hearts are usually the food of choice in my garden, with peanuts remaining in the feeder, uneaten, until I clean them out and refill them with more...since this seemed a pointless exercise, I've now stopped putting out peanuts altogether. Although I see Goldfinches and Greenfinches in neighbouring gardens, they never visit my feeders - perhaps it's next door's cat which keeps them at bay.
David

[anthony29uk2001]

I use sunflower hearts and peanuts and meal worms in suart,Gold finches love sunflower hearts i have had five at once and when they bred i giot young one's the meal worms att
ract Starlins and black birds the Sparrowhawk came into the garden but he must have been after Starlins! You can get suart with meal worms added from Wilkinsons in the UK !Starlins love them

[ColonelBlimp]

I've got sunflower hearts, niger seed, peanuts and fat bal,ls out on my feeding station, and only the hearts really get touched by the birds.

I have to keep some niger seed out, as goldfinches have fed from it twice so I don't want to stop them coming back, and similarly with the peanuts, as it is the only thing out Long-Tailed Tits will take (sadly very small quantities of).

[anthony29uk2001]

I do not use the fat balls but the suart blocks with meal worms in them and there are other types which i get from Wilcos ! they attract starlins and i have had long tail tits in the garden but have not seen them feeding ,the Goldfinches do love sunflower hearts and with luck you will get the young coming and they should increase ! it does take time for them to get to know there is food in your garden !cheers.Tony.

[Steve Jones]

A couple of weeks ago I switched from Black Sunflower seeds to Sunflower hearts. Within days the number of Greenfinches rose from 'occasional' to 'almost all the time', Chaffinches are more regular, Goldfinches (not seen previously) now number 4 regularly and today..male and female Bullfinches (only seen 1 male in my garden in 20 years previously). Crikey!!! Goes without saying that I recommend them,

[Thelma W.]

A couple of weeks ago I switched from Black Sunflower seeds to Sunflower hearts. Within days the number of Greenfinches rose from 'occasional' to 'almost all the time', Chaffinches are more regular, Goldfinches (not seen previously) now number 4 regularly and today..male and female Bullfinches (only seen 1 male in my garden in 20 years previously). Crikey!!! Goes without saying that I recommend them,

There is no question that sunflower hearts are favoured above almost all else. Have you tried the 'kibbled' sunflower hearts? They are tiny pieces which are better for smaller birds. I mix them in the same feeder and there is no waste. Goldfinches love nyjer seeds too. Good luck. I hope you continue to get new visitors. It is such a thrill isn't it?

[pete-c]

Sunflower seeds our Greenfinches love them also the Chaffinches,House Sparrows and Dunnocks like picking them up fom the ground.

Peter

[Heiku-me]

I don't use peanuts at all at my feeders. The squirrels would have them gone in 5 mins. We use lots of black oil sunflower seeds tho. On a regular basis we get lots of gold and purple finch, Pine siskins, nuthatch, blackcapped chickadee, sparrows, hairy wookpecker, Blue jays, and today the Evening Grosbeak arrived. I do see some Morning doves around but never at the feeder. I wonder what might attract them to the feeder?

[peterpp]

Birds like the sunflower seeds, but the peanuts vanish faster thanks to the ever ingenious squirrels.

[Thelma W.]

Birds like the sunflower seeds, but the peanuts vanish faster thanks to the ever ingenious squirrels.

We have the grey squirrels here too and they demolish peanuts, or hide them, faster than I can supply them. Mind you the woodpeckers are giving them a run for their money at the moment, as are the jays.:eek!:

[clayts]

My squirrels are going through a sunflower seed craving at the moment - the peanut feeder is left abandoned, which the great tits and blueys are thankful for.

[clayts]

I put some sunflower hearts out today, and they've proven to be very popular with the tits. I hope this doesn't mean I'll lose those weird and wonderful moments where a tit would nick a sunflower seed, hop on to the wooden fence and then knock the seed against the fence to crack it - it was so loud, I thought someone was knocking on my front door once ;)

[sherryh]

I use a variety of seeds in my different feeders. Peanuts are usually tossed out on the ground for the squirrels and Blue Jays to pick up. Safflower seeds and suet but Black Oil Sunflower Seeds are a constant and seems to please everybirdie that stops by!

[gracegrecia]

Sunflower seeds.

[balvert]

Sunflower seeds are by far the popular choice in my garden. I offer nuts too, but they are more or less ignored.

[bluebird00]

I've never tried sunflower seeds and had to give up with peanuts because the squirrels kept stealing them. I've been using fat feeders with a little pepper which have worked well but am going to try again with the peanuts in special squirrel proof feeders.

Definitely going to try sunflower seeds after reading how popular they seem to be.

[dmeredith]

I've tried peanuts a few times over the last 3 or 4 years and each time the birds have nibbled a couple and then ignored them. My sunflower hearts go down a treat with the greenfinches and the feeder has to be refilled about every 3 days. Put out a peanut feeder 3 weeks ago and they have virtually stopped eating the hearts and go for the peanuts instead (I've not had to refill the heart feeder since I put up the peanuts and it's still half full). I've even seen a coaltit for the first time. Fickle creatures, although I'm happy as it's cheaper to feed them peanuts than hearts as the peanuts last much longer.

[Fozzybear]

In the feeder tray I have if I put whole peanuts in it then they go very quickly! The sunflower hearts are pretty popular too, I think my robin likes them as do the starlings and wood pigeons/collared doves. The peanut feeder isn't getting too much attention yet, but I've seen the starlings and blue/great tits on them and the peanut fat balls are liked by the starlings too.

Truth be told it's too early for me to know for sure which is more popular, but the whole sunflower seeds are definitely not the most taken.

[Susie]

Sunflower hearts definite prove to be the most desireable and generally popular bird food. Peanuts are next and then nyger for the goldfinches.

Fat balls tend to be a bit of a mixed blessing because then we get inundated with starlings.

[blitzbob]

my garden birds get through vast amounts of peanuts and sunflower but leave the mixed seed, and fat balls. the coller doves are first waiting for me to put out the peanuts in the morning. these are followed later by a pair of parakeets and a squirrel. i some times think they eat better than we do

bob

[Peewit]

I think that Sunflower seeds go quicker. The Black Sunflower or Striped sunflower Seeds are much cheaper than the Sunflower Hearts. I think the finches like the Black Sunflowers just as much as the Sunflower Hearts.

Just to look at a Finch of any type moving a Black Sunflower seed round its 'uniquely designed' beak to get the morsel out of the centre of the seed is very interesting to watch. Love to look through the scope for this reason alone. o:)

All of the birds do like Peanuts, and they are just slower to go. My GS woodpecker loves to sit on the Nut Feeder, and consume his fill every morning. :t:

Never tried to buy Peanut Graniles yet, I just break up the whole ones into smaller bits myself.

[Monahawk]

I've tried sunflower seeds, that was until a smart Brown Rat worked out how to demolish the feeder they were in.
Peanuts are popular with the birds in my garden. They are eaten by all sorts from Tits,Finches, Sparrows, Starlings, Robins, Jackdaws, Rooks and Wood Mice.