High quality safflower seed is ideal for attracting cardinals, grosbeaks, nuthatches, and chickadees to your yard. Safflower seed is rich in fat and protein, which are needed for survival.

Safflower is a highly branched, herbaceous, thistle-like annual, usually with many long sharp spines on the leaves. Plants are 30 to 150 cm tall with globular flower heads (capitula) and commonly, brilliant yellow, orange or red flowers. Each branch will usually have from one to five flower heads containing 15 to 20 seeds per head.

Safflower has a strong taproot which enables it to thrive in dry climates, but the plant is very susceptible to frost injury from stem elongation to maturity.

In many cases, safflower seeds will do the trick in stopping squirrels feed at your feeders. These small white seeds are high in protein and fat but have a bitter taste that blackbirds, starlings, grackles and squirrels generally don’t like. Here are some songbirds that do enjoy safflower seeds.

• Safflower seeds are favorites of cardinals and are typically the No. 1 ingredient in mixes designed to attract these bright red birds. Jays enjoy these seeds too.
• Chickadees, house finches, titmice, nuthatches, buntings, and grosbeaks are some of the smaller songbirds that also like safflower seeds.
• Many species of woodpecker will eat safflower seeds as well as their preferred foods, such as nuts
• Mourning doves, named for their soft, sad-sounding call, are common backyard visitors; they like safflower seeds, too.