Sunflowers?
 

If I planted 20 - 30 sunflowers. What kind of wildlife would the seeds attract besides birds? Would deer eat it?

RE: Sunflowers?
 

Jason; 20-30 sunflowers is just a snack for the blue jays. Farm Hunter has expertice in the sunflower area.

Dan O.

RE: Sunflowers?
 

It's not likely that 20-30 anythings are going to attract many deer.
What are you trying to accomplish?

RE: Sunflowers?
 

Well, I could plant more than that. Just to attract more wildlife...deer, birds, bear, coyotes.

RE: Sunflowers?
 

So Jason,
How large an area are we dealing with?

RE: Sunflowers?
 

Well...
I will have a large soybean field in a few months and I already 3 small clover plots and 1 (100-150ft) clover lane about the width of a truck to drive through. I was thinking about scattering lots of sunflowers over about 50acres of land that is connected to almost 3,000 acres of prime hunting land. I just wanted something extra to draw as much wildlife as possible.

RE: Sunflowers?
 

I used some Whitetail Institute Powerplant last year which is a bleand of beans, peas, as well as sun flowers. The deer destroyed the mix and never let it get more then 3 feet tall. Out of aprox 200 Sunflowers that grew in the plot only one made it to seed. The rest were mowed down by the deer.

I'mm not sure how they will atract on their own but if planted in a blend they work very well to attract and the deer really like them.

RE: Sunflowers?
 

We plant several sunflower plots for dove hunting for different land owners, we have one farm in particular that the deer eat them before they get knee high, then we replant and the same thing happens, and there are so many deer on that farm and the landowner doesnt allow any hunting. I have counted several herds of 20-40 deer, I mean different herds.

RE: Sunflowers?
 

Thanks for the info/input! When is the best time to plant them?

RE: Sunflowers?
 

Plant them early - Like late May or early June.

They like alot of Nitrogen - and will not compete real well with heavy grasses or in Sod. - What I mean is - Its not like you can just scatter them on a field and hope they grow.

I think they really have a place - they attract TONS of bees in the late summer months, provide cover for young Wildfowl - and are a great source of food for your local bird population when they start to dry out.

In my experience - they do very little for deer however. Its a fun plant to put in a plot.