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peanuts or sunflowers seeds (1 Viewer)

peanuts or sunflower seeds

  • peanuts

    Votes: 88 14.9%

  • sunflower seeds

    Votes: 502 85.2%
  • Total voters
    589
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.
 
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.
 
From a small Hampshire garden

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
 
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
 
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).
 
fat balls

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.
 
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,
 
Steve Jones said:
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,
Click to expand...

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?
 
peanuts or sunflower seeds

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

Peter
 
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 said:
Birds like the sunflower seeds, but the peanuts vanish faster thanks to the ever ingenious squirrels.
Click to expand...

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!:
 
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.
 
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 ;)
 
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!
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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