Is Cracked Corn Good for Wild Birds?
Cracked corn can suit doves, quail and other ground-feeding birds, but it must stay dry, be served in small amounts and never be planting seed.
5 min read
Field guide · Topic
Bird Food & Seed
What you put in the feeder decides which birds show up. These guides compare the common foods, including black oil sunflower, safflower, nyjer, millet, peanuts, suet, mealworms, fruit and jelly, and explain which birds prefer each one. You will also find simple homemade suet and seed-cake recipes, how to store seed so it stays fresh and free of pests, foods that are unsafe for wild birds, and how feeding should change between hot summers and freezing winters. The aim is less waste, less mess and more of the birds you want.
Bird Food & Seed guides
Homemade Bird Seed Cakes and Cylinders You Can Hang
Seed cakes and cylinders are easy to make in a kitchen and last longer outside than loose seed. The binders that work, the molds to use, and how long to let them dry.
6 min read
Can Wild Birds Eat Raisins and Dried Fruit?
Some fruit-eating birds will take plain soaked raisins. Learn how to soften, portion and remove dried fruit—and why dog access changes the answer.
5 min read
Can Wild Birds Eat Peanut Butter Safely?
Wild birds can eat a small amount of firm peanut butter in cool weather. Learn which product, feeder and hygiene rules keep this treat safer.
5 min read
Sunflower Hearts vs Whole Sunflower Seeds for Birds
Black oil, striped or hulled hearts? A plain comparison of the three sunflower seeds by who eats them, how much mess they leave, and which feeder each one suits.
5 min read
Is Black Oil Sunflower Seed Good for Birds? Pros and Cons
Black oil sunflower is the closest thing to a do-everything bird seed. Here is who eats it, what its downsides are, and when to switch to the hulled kind.
5 min read
Types of Bird Seed and the Birds Each One Attracts
Which seed brings which birds? A master chart of the common types of bird seed, the feeders they work in, and the filler seeds most birds leave on the ground.
5 min read
What to Feed Birds in Winter: High-Energy Foods That Help
Suet, black oil sunflower, peanuts and millet give winter birds the energy to get through cold nights. Here is what to offer, when, and how to keep it safe.
5 min read