Over seed sunflower seeds

kabic

5 year old buck +
anybody try over seeding sunflower seeds?

I asked my wife to pick me up some black oil sunflower seeds today and she brought home 40 pounds which is about twice more than I though I would be getting.

I'm going to try to add some to the small areas where I put buckwheat in two weeks ago (if they aren't too tall and thick already). I also may try to throw some in parts of my clover that I will be mowing because of weeds. There is also a small micro plot of winter rye from last fall I will add some to.

I'm going to get these in before the rain that is coming.

I will also lightly till some in by themselves in a small area
 
The birds have been over seeding them in my lawn as long as I have been feeding them. They germinate easily, go for it. They are a part of my warm season cocktail. The deer love them (too much), and they are a great soil builder. The seeds are an awesome winter food source if you can get a good sized plot that far.
 
Got the sunflower seed down last night. Over seeded young buckwheat, grassy weeds, clover and also got a strip in tilled up soil.

Coincidentally the section of clover I overseeded was established with rye and that was the section with the most weeds.

The rain is now starting to move in so hopefully I will see some good growth.
 
I have a quick question for dipper (please forgive the thread interuption) - I've never heard of leaving them over winter. Did you mean a food source for deer? Will the deer eat the seeds as they fall out or do you mow and leave them? Thanks!
 
Mine never make it to winter but i leave them. It seems that popular opinion is deer prefer standing crops, I've watched them on my place eat off the ground, same with corn pile pics.
 
I have a quick question for dipper (please forgive the thread interuption) - I've never heard of leaving them over winter. Did you mean a food source for deer? Will the deer eat the seeds as they fall out or do you mow and leave them? Thanks!
Ya, they love sunflower seed. My neighbor planted 15 acres as a cover crop and the deer were in it all winter.
 
I never saw deer use of sunflower but it was in a mix I planted once -the birds however loved them (especially the doves). The mix was sunflower, cow peas and sorghum - just something I tried. I have a low deer density and lots of other food around so that may have impacted the deer use. My girls loved the sunflowers and where amazed to see how they followed the sun across the sky.
 
Thanks for the info! I broadcast 5# into an acre & they're coming up great, kabic - but they went onto bare soil. The deer niped a few off, but nothing like the mowing I expected based on other threads. They never touched my turnips last fall either. There's a lot of ag ground in the area. I think maybe the local deer are too spoiled for normal deer food. :D I was going to mow the sunflowers for dove hunting, but I may leave some standing to see if the deer use them this winter.
 
I'm not seeing any sun flowers where I over seeded into young buckwheat. On the other hand, the buckwheat is being utilized, not sure if you can make it out in this photo.

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I've tried sunflowers but they never make it. I have low deer densities and they wipe out the sunflowers when they get about an inch high.
 
I have planted a couple mixes the last two years that have contained just about every warm season seed you could plant. The two favorites hands down are sunflowers and buckwheat with nothing close for third.
 
I planted several areas in sunflowers....and have never seen any grow. Free MHDA seeds....so I can't complain.
 
I planted sunflowers along with my corn this spring to just give it a try in my sand to see if they liked them. I haven't noticed any browsing on them and they are just above knee high!
 
I am going to give it a shot in my Rye plots this year.
 
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