Cresseliaaaa wrote:What brands do you two use? Or what would you consider a "high quality seed mix" (what makes it supiror to other mixes)?
Also the Internet is very contradicting.
It says garlic power, chilli flakes, kale, chickpeas, lentils and beans are food for birds but then other sites say so completely avoid them. Heeeelp!!
All these things are fine, it's only how much or which kind that makes the difference. Garlic powder is fine if used in small amounts (I use the garlic that comes chopped in a glass jar, instead of the powder). Chili powder or flakes are fine, same as anything that is hot and spicy (parrots love them). Kale is highly nutritious but you can't feed it every single day and it should always be organic. Chickpeas should be fed every now and then and not all the time because of their high levels of purines which affect uric acid. Lentils do too although not as much but I still use them in my gloop because of all the other 'good' stuff in them. Beans are fine but I only use the Small White Beans in my gloop because they are the lowest in the bad lectin all beans have (red kidney been the worst and that's why the toxin is usually called 'kidney bean toxin').
A high quality seed mix is one that has mostly good seeds in it (not too helpful, is it? ) Look for mixes that list more cereal grains (wheat, oat groats, millet, etc) than oil seeds (sunflower, safflower) and, if it has sunflowers, make sure it's not a lot and that they are mostly the grey striped kind and not the black oil ones. Don't buy very large quantities because unless it has a 'packaged date' on it, you don't know how long it has been on the shelf (I buy directly from the manufacturer to ensure freshness) and, although seeds can be consumed long after they were packaged, the longer they are out there, the more aflatoxin they will have (aflatoxin is a deadly toxin produced by the fungus aspergillus which is found EVERYWHERE but mostly on dry grains and seeds).