The kind of birdseed you offer in your bird feeders determines which birds you will attract to your garden. While nearly all birds will eat sunflowers seeds, mixing it up a little with a variety of seeds is sure to please the birds in your neighborhood.

Types of Birdseed

Striped Sunflower Seeds

These seeds are the least expensive . While a wide assortment of birds happily eat striped sunflower seeds, they do not contain enough fat for feeding during the winter. Striped sunflower seeds are a good alternative during warm weather.

Black Oil Sunflower Seeds

Black oil sunflower seeds are smaller and higher in fat content than striped sunflower seeds are. The high fat content supplies the energy birds need to keep warm during the cold winter months.Choose black oil sunflower seeds when the mercury drops in the fall and winter.

Sunflower Hearts

Sunflower hearts work well in feeders for small birds who may finding cracking the shell of sunflower seeds difficult. These "hot meats" have been coated with liquid habanero chili peppers to prevent squirrels from eating them. Because birds have a poorly developed sense of taste, they are not bothered by the hot flavor.

Finch Seed

Finch food ranges from thistle or Nyjer seed to mixtures of tiny seeds just the right size for finches. Although finches will eat sunflower seeds, they prefer thistle seed or finch food.

Suet 

Suet attracts the stately woodpecker, but he's not the only bird who enjoys suet. Nuthatches, chick-a-dees and blue jays also like suet and will eat it when the sunflower seeds are gone.

Wild Bird Seed Mixes

There are a host of specialty seeds designed to attract birds to your backyard. These range from suet balls and peanuts to wild bird seed mixtures with nuts and fruits.

Seed Preferences of Common Songbirds
Quail, Pheasants: Cracked corn, millet, wheat, milo
Pigeons, Doves: Millet, cracked corn, wheat, milo, niger, buckwheat, sunflower, baked goods
Woodpeckers: Suet, meat scraps, sunflower hearts/seed, cracked corn, peanuts, fruits, sugar solution
Jays: Peanuts, sunflower, suet, meat scraps, cracked corn, baked goods
Titmice, Chickadees: Peanut kernels, sunflower, suet, peanut butter
Nuthatches: Suet, suet mixes, sunflower hearts and seed, peanut kernels, peanut butter
Wrens, Creepers: Suet, suet mixes, peanut butter, peanut kernels, bread, fruit, millet (wrens)
Mockingbirds, Thrashers, Catbirds: Halved apple, chopped fruits, baked goods, suet, nutmeats, millet (thrashers), soaked raisins, currants, sunflower hearts
Kinglets: Suet, suet mixes, baked goods
Warblers: Suet, suet mixes, fruit, baked goods, sugar solution, chopped nutmeats
Cardinals, Grosbeaks: Sunflower, safflower, cracked corn, millet, fruit
Towhees, Juncos: Millet, sunflower, cracked corn, peanuts, baked goods, nutmeats
Sparrows, Buntings: Millet, sunflower hearts, black-oil sunflower, cracked corn, baked goods
Blackbirds, Starlings: Cracked corn, milo, wheat, table scraps, baked goods, suet
Finches, Siskins: Thistle (niger), sunflower hearts, black-oil sunflower seed, millet, canary seed, fruits, peanut kernels, suet mixes