What's the difference between straights and a seed mix?

A straight is one ingredient on its own — sunflower hearts or nyjer seed, for example — while a mix blends several seeds and cereals together. Straights let you target particular birds and leave less waste under the feeder; a mix is the simpler all-in-one option if you would rather not choose.

Do I need a special feeder for nyjer seed?

Yes, a standard mesh or tube feeder has ports too large for nyjer and it will simply run out onto the ground. Look for a feeder specifically sold for nyjer, which has much smaller ports designed to hold the tiny seed in place while a finch feeds.

Are sunflower hearts better than whole sunflower seeds?

They are more convenient rather than nutritionally superior — hearts have the husk already removed, so there is no shell debris left under the feeder and almost no waste, but whole seed is cheaper if you do not mind sweeping up afterwards.

Will mealworms attract rats as well as birds?

Any food left out overnight can attract rodents, mealworms included, so put out only as much as birds will clear in a day and avoid leaving food on the ground after dusk. A tray feeder that you top up in the morning is safer than a permanently full one.

How much straight food should I put out?

Little and often works better than filling a large feeder in one go, particularly with sunflower hearts and nyjer seed, which spoil once damp. Refill little enough that it is mostly eaten within a day or two, and clean the feeder regularly rather than topping up on top of old food.

Wild bird straights

A straight is a wild bird food made from one ingredient rather than a blended mix — sunflower hearts, nyjer seed, peanuts and dried mealworms are the four you will see most often. Feeding straights lets you choose exactly what goes on the bird table rather than relying on whatever ratio a mix happens to contain.

What counts as a straight

Sunflower hearts are the most popular straight because they have no husk to leave behind — the mess under a feeder drops right off compared with whole sunflower seed, and almost every garden bird will eat them. Whole black sunflower seed is the husked version of the same thing, cheaper but leaving a scatter of shells for you to sweep up.

Nyjer seed is tiny, oily and specifically attracts finches — goldfinches in particular — and needs a feeder with small ports so it does not just pour out. Peanuts, whether in shell or shelled into granules, bring in tits, woodpeckers and nuthatches, and dried mealworms are the one most robins and blackbirds will actually come down for, since they are built to eat insects rather than seed.

Choosing the right one for your garden

If you only ever put out one thing, sunflower hearts are the safest general choice — almost every species that visits a UK garden will eat them, from finches to blackbirds. Add nyjer seed specifically if you want to attract goldfinches, since a seed mix rarely contains enough of it to make a real difference.

Mealworms are worth having alongside seed if you get ground-feeding birds like robins, blackbirds and dunnocks, particularly in spring when they are feeding hungry chicks insects rather than seed. Peanuts suit a garden that already gets woodpeckers or nuthatches, or if you want to add fat and protein through the colder months.

How to feed straights without waste

Sunflower hearts and nyjer seed both go soft and mouldy quickly once wet, so a small amount refreshed often works better than filling a large feeder and leaving it. Wipe feeders down and give them a proper clean every couple of weeks — a mouldy feeder does more harm to visiting birds than an empty one.

Nyjer needs its own feeder with narrow ports, since a standard seed feeder lets it pour straight out, and mealworms are best offered on an open tray rather than through a tube feeder, since that is closer to how a bird would actually find them on the ground.

Straights or a seed mix?

A seed mix is the easier all-rounder if you want one feeder that satisfies most visitors without thinking about it, since a decent mix already blends sunflower, some cereal and a little of the smaller seed. The trade-off is that a mix always contains something a particular bird will pick out and drop, and mixes that are mostly cereal filler attract fewer species than one built around better ingredients.

Straights give you more control for less waste, but only if you know roughly what you are trying to attract. Plenty of gardens run both — a straight or two for the birds you specifically want to see, and a mix for the general traffic through the rest of the year.

In this section

Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.

Johnston Jeff Selected Wild Bird Food

A wild bird seed mix with black oil sunflower for a wide range of garden birds

From£2.79

Choose options

Peckish Complete Seed and Nut No Mess Wild Bird Seed Mix

A no-mess seed and nut mix for the garden, built from 12 ingredients for up to 16 bird species

£20.99

Peckish Natural Balance Wild Bird Seed Mix

A 1.7KG, 10-seed wild bird mix, entirely UK-sourced, in recyclable packaging

£3.99

Peckish Winter Warmer High Energy Wild Bird Seed Mix

A high-energy winter seed mix for garden birds, feeder or table

£24.99

Johnston & Jeff Premium Wild Bird - Wheat-Free with Suet

A husk-free, wheat-free wild bird mix with suet pellets for extra winter energy

£29.99

Supa Wild Bird Peanut Feeder

A 12-inch wire mesh peanut feeder, sized up to cut down on refills over winter

£5.99

Rosewood Recycled Wild Bird Seed Feeder

A 1.2 litre wild bird seed feeder that fixes to a wall, post or drainpipe

£15.00

Supa Wild Bird Feeder

A compact 7-inch wire mesh peanut feeder, a low-cost way to start feeding peanuts

£4.49

Rosewood Recycled Wild Bird Bottom Seed Feeder

25cm recycled bird seed feeder, washable, for small to medium birds

£9.00

Supa Wild Bird Seed Feeder 10 Port

A 30in (75cm) 10-port garden bird seed feeder, holding around 1.25kg of seed

£10.49

Supa Wild Bird Robin & Small Bird Feeder

An adjustable dome bird feeder that blocks larger birds like pigeons from feeding

£5.99

Rosewood Recycled Wild Bird Fatball Ring

23cm recycled fat ball feeder, holds up to 10 standard fat balls

£9.00

Browse all of Birds →

Common questions

What's the difference between straights and a seed mix?: A straight is one ingredient on its own — sunflower hearts or nyjer seed, for example — while a mix blends several seeds and cereals together. Straights let you target particular birds and leave less waste under the feeder; a mix is the simpler all-in-one option if you would rather not choose.
Do I need a special feeder for nyjer seed?: Yes, a standard mesh or tube feeder has ports too large for nyjer and it will simply run out onto the ground. Look for a feeder specifically sold for nyjer, which has much smaller ports designed to hold the tiny seed in place while a finch feeds.
Are sunflower hearts better than whole sunflower seeds?: They are more convenient rather than nutritionally superior — hearts have the husk already removed, so there is no shell debris left under the feeder and almost no waste, but whole seed is cheaper if you do not mind sweeping up afterwards.
Will mealworms attract rats as well as birds?: Any food left out overnight can attract rodents, mealworms included, so put out only as much as birds will clear in a day and avoid leaving food on the ground after dusk. A tray feeder that you top up in the morning is safer than a permanently full one.
How much straight food should I put out?: Little and often works better than filling a large feeder in one go, particularly with sunflower hearts and nyjer seed, which spoil once damp. Refill little enough that it is mostly eaten within a day or two, and clean the feeder regularly rather than topping up on top of old food.

Sources

Written against guidance published by UK veterinary and welfare organisations. Always confirm specifics with your own vet.

Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.