Sunflowers

Part Time Pete · Jul 22, 2015

A BTO planted a field of sunflowers near me. A farmer I worked for as a kid tried putting them up for silage, but are the seeds good as a grain feed?
Can they be harvested with a regular combine?
Pete

donjr · Jul 22, 2015

A friend of mine (also a BFO) plants sunflowers when he's past the time limit to plant late season beans, which is about July 15th around these parts. He harvests them with a combine head, although he bought a head just for sunflower which didn't really work out that well. He harvests them for crushing and bird seed for some outfit up in Pennsyltucky.

Dick2 · Jul 22, 2015

Special attachments are available for the header to harvest sunflowers. The seeds remain in the shell, so they would not be good for feed. There are two types of sunflowers: Confectionary and oil types. The oil types can work like a laxative, so they wouldn't be good for animals if they ate very many. We raised the oil variety; it was always a temptation to reach into the hopper and grab a handful to eat - just has to be careful not to eat too many.

The confectionary types are the ones that are salted for human consumption. Sometimes they are shelled for baking, etc. - just don't eat too many of those at a time either.

If you are going to raise sunflowers, it is best to contract them before you plant.

True Son · Jul 22, 2015

Don't know how to harvest them. I always brush hog them down a couple of weeks before dove season!!! Finches harvest a lot from the standing ones, and we harvest a lot of doves! True Son

Bob · Jul 22, 2015

Photo from the 80's... my Massey 760 with straight head set up with "Lucke" sunflower "pans" and a sunflower finger reel.

You run a very slow cylinder speed so as not to crack the hulls, otherwise combining them is pretty much like combing grain.

<img src = "http://www.gondtc.com/~blweltin/Bob/Massey760.jpg"

dzc3 · Jul 22, 2015

The seeds make good feed for stock cows. They will not be digested until they reach the rumen. The bacteria in the rumen go to work on them, and use the oil in the seed as energy to make more bacteria which increases the health of the rumen which = a healthy stock cow. Not sure how the would work on animals which do not have a rumen

Gary from Muleshoe · Jul 22, 2015

Where I come from (KS) they were called weeds in the soybean field. Never could convince Dad otherwise. lol

Tim(nj) · Jul 22, 2015

There a few sunflowers grown in my area and all are oil seed type. Some are for the "Jersey Grown" birdseed program, others go to FM Brown in Pennsylvania, most likely where your neighbor's go. One of the growers has Sunstar attachments on his corn head to harvest the flowers. Deckplate is replaced with a choke and stationary knife assembly which pops the heads off as the rollers pull them through.

Gambles · Jul 22, 2015

My brother planted a field of them about 5 years ago. The nearest buyer was about an hour away. Penciling everything in, including the fact that he's got a semi trailer that is much bigger than the average, he found that it just didn't have the same amount of profit as other grains. Plus, every Tom, Dick and Harry (or Harriet), was calling him for months later wanting to go pick up the scraps so that they could get free seed for their bird feeders.

tlock0331 · Jul 22, 2015

I used to cut sunflowers in eastern colorado with a 760 and sunflower pans as well. Always had to have a fire extinguisher or two on hand in the combine cause the white powder would build up in the rear and smolder. We used to haul into goodland ks.

Sunflowers

Part Time Pete

Well-known Member

donjr

Well-known Member

Dick2

Well-known Member

True Son

Member

Bob

Well-known Member

dzc3

Member

Gary from Muleshoe

Well-known Member

Tim(nj)

Well-known Member

Gambles

Well-known Member

tlock0331

Member

Similar threads