The Avant-Garden Shop: Your Garden & Bird Store

bird seed

GARDEN GATE: Episode 326 – Specialized Seed and Feeders (Sept 26, 2025)

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 On today’s episode Brenda is talking about some of the specialized bird seed, blends, and the feeders you can use to attract certain birds. The American Goldfinch is one of our favourite year-round birds. To keep them happy we have a blend of their most loved seeds called NiChip. It includes Niger seed and chips … Read more

Tis the Season for New Seeds

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With birds migrating south to winter homes, and starlings and grackles pretty much gone, now is a good time to make seasonal changes to your bird feeding routine.  Something that new bird watchers may not know is something veteran birders have known for years (and that squirrels don’t particularly like): White millet. A grass seed … Read more

Building your Best Bird Feeding Station

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For all the reasons you think you can’t have a bird feeder, think again. Too many trees, too many squirrels, too much soggy seeds or not enough yard? Whatever the problem, we can likely help you build a system that works in your space, whether garden, patio or deck.  Many who have said “we just … Read more

GARDEN GATE: Episode 305 – Suet & Seed Cylinders! (November 8, 2024)

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Suet, seed cakes and cylinders are a great feeding option for the colder months. Birds really love the quick energy boost they get from suet, peanuts and sunflower seeds! There are six different kinds of our premium suet from Mill Creek. They have only the best ingredients that birds love, including mealworms and fruit! Suet … Read more

GARDEN GATE: Episode 304 – Bird Seed Quality Makes a Difference! (October 25, 2024)

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When the birds are happy, we’re happy! To keep them happy and healthy a good quality seed can make a big difference. The seed at the Avant-Garden shop is fresh weekly from Mill Creek Seed Co. This is a family business specializing in wild bird food. Every blend has been specially formulated using only the … Read more

GARDEN GATE: Episode 254 – Attracting Finches & Grosbeaks (Nov 18, 2022)

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A Spruce Budworm outbreak in northern areas meant a lot of food for Evening Grosbeaks and Purple Finches this year. That, coupled with a smaller mast (seed and nut) crop, means there are more individuals of these species than there is food to support them, so many will move father south than usual this winter … Read more

Garden Gate: Episode 202 – Compare the quality (Nov. 6th, 2020)

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Customers often talk about the price of bird food when they should be considering the QUALITY! On this episode I dissect a bag of box store bird food. Even I was shocked at how poor the quality was. Birds don’t eat wheat or milo which is in high quantities in box store mixes. Even the … Read more

Garden Tips: Fall Bird Feeding

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Fall Feeder Fun! Fall migration has already begun for some bird species. As birds leave their northern breeding grounds to head south for the winter, the numbers of birds and species of birds that will pass through or arrive in this part of Ontario will increase quite a bit over the next month or two. … Read more

Garden Gate: Episode 56 – The BAD seed

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Woodland ? CHEX TV airdate: Friday, Feb. 6th, 2015 Click link to watch this episode. I knew our bird food was good stuff. ?But it wasn’t until I picked some other “bird food” up at a box store that I realized HOW good! On this episode of the Garden Gate I will show you how to tell the difference between good and bad bird food. ?And the birds will also tell you! ?If you don’t have any birds at your feeders, there is very likely something wrong with the food. Many box store brands are filled with seeds that the birds don’t like. ?If the ingredients list includes “grains”, mostly like that is wheat. ?Pheasants and chickens may eat wheat, but backyard birds don’t. ?Also ingredient lists sometimes note that “oil may be used to suppress dust.” ?Birds don’t like oil and dust anymore than you do! ?The box store bag I picked up felt so dusty I was shocked! Even black oil sunflower varies from store to store. ?It is sorted be weight. ?Lightweight seeds are separated by being blown off a conveyor belt. The light weight seeds go in the cheaper bags and you get more shell than you do seed! ?Birds will toss most of these seeds on the ground because it’s not worth their time and energy to open the shells for little reward. Our bird food is filled with only the good stuff. ?No filler. No dust. No oil. NO wheat! ?You’ll find you have much more activity at your feeders and a much wider variety of birds. The sunflower seeds are plump and fresh! Ask for our most popular blend “Seasons Woodland.” And, finally if you’re thinking quality bird food is more expensive, then think again. ?Depending on the bird food you choose, 10lbs is less than $15.00 and there is NO waste. ?Give ours a try! I’m sure you’ll be surprised with the results.

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