Most general seed mixes lean on three or four cheap grains to bulk out a bag, so a mix that instead lists a long run of named seeds — hemp, nyjer, safflower — is aiming at a different, choosier crowd of visitors.

Bucktons Wildbird Premium combines kibbled maize, naked oats, red dari, red millet, yellow millet, kibbled sunflower hearts, white dari, canary seed, pinhead oatmeal, kibbled peanuts, safflower seed, panicum millet, hempseed, Japanese millet and nyjer seed.

• Composition: kibbled maize, naked oats, red dari, red millet, yellow millet, kibbled sunflower hearts, white dari, canary seed, pinhead oatmeal, kibbled peanuts, safflower seed, panicum millet, hempseed, Japanese millet, nyjer seed
• No cheap filler grains such as whole oats
• 20KG bag

What the label doesn't say. Bucktons don't publish a protein, fat or energy analysis for this mix, and there's no species-by-species breakdown of who each seed is aimed at — the variety is the pitch, rather than a stated nutritional figure.

Who it's for: anyone who wants to attract a wider range of birds than a basic mix manages, including species that favour hemp or nyjer, and is happy paying a premium for the longer ingredient list.