Sunflowers

[FCSpringer]

What do you think of putting in some sunflowers to leave in for birds for hunting or winter food. Are they good winter food and which ones work the best for the birds. The ones we stick in our bird feeder just sprout off the ground from the tweetys spilling them. So can you just broad cast them all over and get them to grow? Or rake them in like lawn seed.?

 

[BritChaser]

Sunflowers Good for Birds

What do you think of putting in some sunflowers to leave in for birds for hunting or winter food. Are they good winter food and which ones work the best for the birds. The ones we stick in our bird feeder just sprout off the ground from the tweetys spilling them. So can you just broad cast them all over and get them to grow? Or rake them in like lawn seed.?

Great idea. About all the habitat development I've seen incorporates sunflowers.

 

[mnmthunting]

Sunflowers stalks do hold up well in heavy snow. Wildlife love sunflower seed. I've planted sunflower plots several times. 2-3 acre plots planted with a corn planter. Sunflowers need to have worked soil otherwise won't amount to much and don't compete well with weeds.
Trouble is, blackbirds and crows and lots of other birds and also deer will have the seeds gone well before Winter.

 

[FCSpringer]

Sunflowers stalks do hold up well in heavy snow. Wildlife love sunflower seed. I've planted sunflower plots several times. 2-3 acre plots planted with a corn planter. Sunflowers need to have worked soil otherwise won't amount to much and don't compete well with weeds.
Trouble is, blackbirds and crows and lots of other birds and also deer will have the seeds gone well before Winter.

I don't have a real big deer problem, so that will be OK, but how much does the soil need to be worked? and should I plant convectionary's or oil seed?

 

[mnmthunting]

I haven't planted the confectionery type. One thing about the oil seed. Plant the same 50 lb bag stuff you would buy to feed the birds, cheap and will grow just fine. I would work the soil down 6-8 inches.

 

[FCSpringer]

I haven't planted the confectionery type. One thing about the oil seed. Plant the same 50 lb bag stuff you would buy to feed the birds, cheap and will grow just fine. I would work the soil down 6-8 inches.

Thanks I think I am going to try this, I was planting corn with a H farmall , a 2 bottom plow, a 6' disk and a one row corn planter. It got done ok as I only put out about an acre or two, but then I put in a clover mix and just dumped out a corn pile. Due to MN law we are no longer able to dump a corn pile out for deer so I will have to go back to a standing crop of some kind. I don't understand that mentality, but it is the law. To me there is no differance in 12 rows of corn or a pickup box full. one was just easier and alowed me to do more, with adding clover. The dose is that I sold my H. but I still have my other equip. and will just use a neighbors tractor. I can understand not wanting people hunting over bait or a corn pile during deer season. but a food plot is basicly the same darn thing. And they had a restriction that you had to be quite aways away from it when you did hunt. But standing plots you can put a tower right in the middle of it. I did not even sit out here deer hunting but it was nice to have it out there early so I did not have to trudge in the snow like now. So when I saw these flowers growing in the yard that gave me the Idea, but the way it looks it will be more work then I had hoped, similar to corn planting the way it sounds.

 

[mnmthunting]

I did a few acres of of Sunflowers planted with a grain drill mixed with wheat. Worked the soil, planted then drug it in a inch or so. The Sunflowers did OK all had small flowers and made seed. Lots of Pig Weed and Lambs quarter however.
But WOW! talk about Pheasant cover! The wheat was short but still was very useful to the wildlife.
Thinking about doing this method this Spring, only I will work the soil, let the weeds germinate, then dig the weeds again before planting.

I thought putting corn out as long as you don't hunt deer near by is OK?