FINCHforum

Does anyone mix their own seed blends? I have been looking at the most cost effective way to feed my birds and have been playing with the Idea of buying bulk bags of Nyger, Millet, Grass ect and mixing my own seed and storing extra in a chest freezer. Just wondering if anyone has any experience with this.

Well that will let you mix up a mix that they WILL eat. Everything that I have bought, they don't eat "something" in the mix. The worst were "fortified" seed mixes, where they did not eat half the stuff in the mix. Mine essentially do NOT eat dark seeds, I have RARELY seen dark seed hulls in the hulls I blow out.

I found buying in bulk from ABBA seed and paying truck freight the easiest and averages around $1.00 per pound for premium mixes.I order finch mix, carary mix, songfood mix. I will buy 50 lbs hulled millet for young waening birds.
I use to buy 50 lb sacks of canary grass seed, porso millet, red millet. siberian, etc. at a cheaper price from my feed store. But I found the inconvience of picking the stuff up and the time to mix was not time affective. Also the quality of the seed always varied and sometimes was not polished/dusted enough. The premixed seeds from a larger reputable company many time have seeds not easily obtainable in bulk. They also have a pretty balanced mixture.
I just can't mix my own any better nor any cheaper than buying in bulk.

I do mix my own - I order it from Herman Brothers and they will mix anything you want together. The cost is good and the freight isn't too bad.

www.hermanbros-seed.com

I buy 50# bag of proso and mix it with a 20# bag of Volkman Premium Canary mix. The birds do not waste a seed.

I have to mix my own seed. Anything premixed is imported at outrageous cost. local mixes are mostly aimed at home gardeners offering wild birds seed and are not the best quality/ratios. I buy in bulk and mix my own proportions as this works out cheapest. I have to fetch all my own seed. We don't have too many places that offer delivery for such low costing purchases. Its ok though as the feed store is pretty local. What goes into the mix depends on the season and mostly what my birds don't waste. I have fiddled for the last two years with this mix and currently this works for me.
This is my basic seed mix. I mix 4 part Basic mix : 1 part Canary mix
Basic mix:
4 part white millet
1 part red millet
2 part Japanese millet
3 part red manna

Canary mix:
1 part linseed (remove from mix over winter as they waste it)
1 part black rape
5 part plain canary seed

I have a dove mix that has hemp, sorghum, wheat, hulled sunflower and crushed corn, which the finches help themselves to. Although I don’t think they eat much crushed corn/sorghum

I also have extra Linseed (during winter), Niger & black Rape seed available. This I don't mix, but offer separately as they waste it otherwise.

The birds also get egg food, boiled eggs, fruit & veg and insects (both commercial pâté & live food)

PS if anyone has any comments on this I will hear it gladly. I am learning all the time.

MLaRue wrote:I do mix my own - I order it from Herman Brothers and they will mix anything you want together. The cost is good and the freight isn't too bad.

http://www.hermanbros-seed.com

Thanks for the link - I think I will order from them myself! Looks great!