Y'all need to feed the birds too! You'll do well to have one feeder of black oiled sunflower seeds and a second feeder of black Niger (thistle) seed for small birds. However, you might wish to try mixing up some of your own wild bird feed to see if you can get some special visitors that you don't normally see in your yard.
You can buy commercially packaged wild bird feed. I mix my own from feed I buy at a farm cooperative. In determining your needs, consider the number of feeders you plan to fill, the amount of seed you plan to use, storage requirements, and the price of ingredients at a farm store, versus the cost of buying commercially mixed wild bird feed at a specialty store. You may also want to consult with local bird watchers to determine which ingredients might work best in your area.
I obviously didn't take this picture and I don't know where I found it, but this is a picture of a yellow shafted flicker (which is a medium-sized woodpecker). I saw a bird like this at one of my feeders when it contained my special wild bird feed. I can't guarantee you'll get one just like it at your feeder. We get a variety of woodpeckers where we live.
I'm about to make up another batch of my special mix, so I'll share my recipe with you. A worker at a Southern States Farm Store and I commiserated over the selections of feed available and together we came up with this recipe.
Buy bags of a variety of ingredients and stir to make your own special mix. I get a tremendous variety of colorful birds with this mix. Go to a farm store such as the Southern States cooperative to buy your seed. You may save a lot of money.
Ingredients:
- ½ of a 25 Lb bag grey stripe sunflower seeds
- ½ of a 25 Lb bag black oil sunflower seeds
- 1 – 25 Lb bag sunflower kernels
- 1 – 1 Lb bag of peanut hearts
- ½ bag of safflower
- dried fruit, chopped (they love it, but this is optional)
Mix all of the above seeds together. There is only one problem with this mix. Squirrels also love it. You'll need to find a way to make your feeders squirrel-resistant. Notice I didn't say squirrel-proof. However, you can greatly minimize squirrel pilferage with available squirrel resistant feeders. If you truly have a squirrel-proof feeder, I'd like to see it. It appears that my neighbor has finally come up with one. When I'm sure he has, I'll take a picture of his rig and share it with you.
Use a galvanized garbage can to mix and store your bird feed. It needs to come complete with a good fitting galvanized lid. After you mix the feed and fill your feeders, put the steel lid on the can containing the rest of your feed. Use two heavy rocks--one on either side of the handle--to secure the lid. I promise you that squirrels can and will remove a steel lid if it is not well-anchored by heavy objects.
Do not use a hard rubber or plastic storage container. I can testify to the fact that a squirrel can and will chew a hole right through the side of these containers and will happily squat in your can and eat your bird food. I also recommend that you not store bird feed under your house. They will pull down your fiberglass insulation to squirrel away feed. You might be able to store a galvanized can containing this bird feed in your garage, providing you have a tight fitting door. Squirrels and raccoons have strong claws.
