i think you need more than one type ..

you need to have.. early flowering.. mid flowering .... and late flowering ....

presuming you are correct that finches approve of sunflower ...

to default to one type.. will really limit the show ..

ken

I plant agastaches for the Goldfinches. To watch them hang onto the swaying flower as they work their way around each one pulling out the seed, is real entertainment. Al

Hi finchelover,

Finches don't limit themselves to just one kind of seed. I have to protect my hybrid zinnia seeds with "hairnets" to keep them from eating the ripening zinnia seeds.

Finches will eat some kinds of sunflower seeds from a bird feeder. They also eat other kinds of seeds from a bird feeder. They particularly like thistle seeds, which are best fed in a thistle seed feeder. Thistle seeds are available where bird seeds are sold (which is most everywhere). Thistle seeds cost more than sunflower seeds and most birdseed mixes, but finches really love thistle seeds.

The advantage of using commercial bird feeders is that you don't limit the birds to the seasonal availability of the seeds and you can locate the feeders where you can see them readily from one or more of your windows. And you can use the space that the sunflowers would take up for growing ornamental plants that butterflies like.

You might want to post this question over at the Bird Watching Forum.

ZM

Black oil sunflowers work well for me.

tj

I let most of my Agastache go to seed, too....for the annual finch-capades, as I call it. Even our neighbors like to sit out and watch them go nuts. We also keep a feeding sock filled with the black nyjer (called thistle but not thistle) seed for them.

The Agastache pulls a double duty. It's one of the best bee (and butterfly) plants there is. I call them bee-sicles. After they go to seed, the finches and other birds find them right away. Echinaceae is exactly the same (bees/butterflies/birds).

the most entertaining of plants .. in my experience.. for finchal acrobatics.. was a large weed thistle ...

but i dont know if i would want to introduce that nightmare to a garden.. the one i had was very neatly self planted out in a ditch ...

ken

I get hoards of goldfinch when my beds of echinacea are going to seed. They just come in groups from seemingly nowhere to cover them.