Sunflower seed

alleycat · Aug 3, 2006

For those of you who feed the wild birds . . .

Is it my imagination, or has black oil sunflower seed gone through the roof? Last year I think I was buying it for something like $14 for a 50 pound bag. The last I got was almost $22.

I feed the birds (and more squirrels than I want) year round and also get it for my mother, so I go through over 1,000 pounds of the stuff a year.

ac

bubblegirl · Aug 3, 2006

I never even knew about feeding birds sunflower seeds Are they healthier for birds than bread? Most wild birds in Australia get thrown bread or a hot chip. Why is the tradition to throw a seagull a hot chip? Do we think he has battered fish to go with it? lol

alleycat · Aug 3, 2006

Sunflower seeds (both black oil and striped) are one of the most popular ways to feed the birds in the US. Cardinals, chickadees and a variety of other birds love them.

I make it a point NOT to throw out bread. If I do, I get too many starlings and birds of that type. Starlings are a real pest in my area. Which is why . . . I've killed hundreds of them. And would gladly kill the rest. They are not native to the US. I've heard that they were originally brought over and released at the opening of Central Park in New York. I'm not sure whether that's true or not.

awatkins · Aug 3, 2006

We go through a ton of black oil sunflower seeds, too. Can't remember what we paid for the last bag. Enough so that those birds need to get jobs and help defray the cost! lol

This year I planted a bunch of sunflower seeds from a seed mix (striped and black oil) and they did really well. The wild birds enjoy eating the seeds right out of the flowers. A lemon-yellow goldfinch perched atop a bright yellow sunflower is really pretty. Cardinals, too.

Sunflower seed

alleycat

Still around

bubblegirl

Resident Bubble Girl

alleycat

Still around

awatkins

Not harboring illegal parrot