Squirrels don't miss many chances for a meal of seed. Mine are so picky now that some won't eat bread unless it's crunchy and whole grain is their favorite. I put this out along with seeds in birdfeeders and cracked corn on ground for birds who can't make it to feeders. One of two young ones keeps digging in one particular Lobelia holding pot. Everytime I see it dug up I check to see what delectable item he's buried. Little num-nuts is burying Black Oiled Sunflower Seed. Try to tell him it won't carry him through winter. This will be his first winter so he'll find out there will be plenty of food to go around when the White Throated Sparrows return from their summer in Canada. They get fed a couple times a day on the driveway, under "their" bush and various familiar places. The Finches haven't touched any seedheads on all the flowers they're supposed to. Coneflowers, Agastache, Liatris, Joe Pye Weed, Ehcinops...nada with the finches. They'd rather take up residence inside the Sunflower Seed feeder and are completely immune to the rantings and protestations of all the other birds waiting to swoop in, take their seed and fly to a branch to eat it. I love my little bird and squirrel yardigans...on the other hand I wouldn't mind getting rid of the deer, rabbits, groundhogs and chipmunks at least by half the damage they've done. Squirrels haven't even touched tomato or pepper plants. The one hanging upside down with a Hosta leaf dangling from his mouth must have been hysterical. Hopefully he didn't make a season long habit of it! My young ones jump on low forsythia branches near birdfeeders/water baths and swing from them when they're in a frisky, playful mood. These 2 little guys will be making their first winter nests which should be interesting. I've watched others collect things and take the same path innumerable times up and down a tree with their treasures making their nests. Northerner, that squirrel must have a tough mouth to chew apart the coneflower seedhead. I tied netting over some seed pods on my tropical milkweed since the Monarch cats were eating them all. Hope you get some seeds from your precious Echinacea 'Jade'...the green cones really add a great dimension to a group of plants from photos I saw.

I know nothing about birds i have had a small wooden bird house on my porch for 20 years i have had small sparrows or wrens living there and mating there for years This year i bought a hanging house like feeder which is hung about 4 feet away i never knew that people hate house sparrows i enjoy watching thrm sitting on top of the bird house once or twice i saw them at the feeder not much action I filled the feeder with classic wild bird food i hope i see more birds in the Spring any advice for me about seeds or sparrows i have never had a problem i just wanted to feed thrm thanks for your advice

Dandelion seeds. Not what you probably want to plant but real fun watching goldfinches attact the seed heads from the air. When one piece of fluff gets away they do all kinds of acrobatics to catch the seed. Plant some zinna's and other of the plant foods recomended for your area. In my area the finches are on their nests and are less likely to visit feeders. When fledged they will sometimes come to the feeders. Watch for sparrow like birds on the ground near the feeders. The baby birds will put their wings out and shake them to get parents attention. Baby finches do not have the same coloration that mature birds do.

It's on or near the University campus, I think. It was small, but packed with butterflies and flowers. They had a big research dept. that you can walk past, they are mounting and breeding butterflies. We also found (online) a butterfly farm, haven't been there yet. Here is their website. http://www.greathousebutterflyfarm.com/ Here is a link that might be useful: Butterfly house