Harvesting and Drying Sunflowers:

There's more to hasg and ing slowers than many professional growers realize. How soon you decide to hast them will depend largely on energy costs, ttures, and whether you prefer them to natury. Idey, your slowers won't be exposed to insects and diseases, and the tture will be warm enough to ow them to on the stem. However, those circumstances are rare. In reality, most cs will be vulnble to some level of pests and diseases. And depending upon where you live, the tture cause your slowers to freeze.

In this article, I'll explain some of the benefits of hasg your slowers early. I'll also describe how they're dried and why the moisture in the air affect your cs.

Benefits Of Hasg Early

With energy expenses escalag, you might think that owing your slowers to natury is a good idea. But, there are plenty of reasons why you should consider hasg them early. First, if the tture is close to freezing during the evenings, your slower cs are not actuy ing. The moisture is being sealed inside. But, even if you're not growing your slowers in freezing ttures, there are still many advantages to an early hast.

For example, the weather often be harsh for slowers. Rain and strong winds pummel your cs and prevent them from ing perly. Also, keep in mind that the longer you ow your cs to stay outside, the more vulnble they'll be to insects, birds, and other pests. What's more, they're more susceptible to mildew, mold, and diseases.

Slowers also have to cope with weeds, which become a problem if they're not managed. You use chemicals to control them, but their effectiveness is often limited, depending upon the weather and soil. If you own a high-power er that output high ttures, consider an early hast to them yourself.

Tture And Moisture

There are many places where the air has increased capacity to hold moisture during the hast season (for example, South and North Dakota). When this is the case, your cs will more quickly. Slowers, because of their ability to take advantage of past cs' residual fertility, be especiy resilient in this type of weather. And the higher the tture, the more capacity for moisture the air has. In that case, you might be able to ow your slowers to on the stem a little longer. Of course, you'll still need to be vigilant about protecg them from critters, insects, and weeds.

Hasg Your Slowers

Years ago, growers hasted their slowers when the backs of the heads began to turn brown. However, many cs today come from hybrids and should actuy be hasted when the heads are still yellow.

When your cs have a seed moisture of about 35%, you should consider hasg them. You actuy wait until the moisture level is approximately 12%, but you'll run the risk of a fire in your combine. This is another benefit of an early hast. The dar the seeds, the less likely a combine fire will occur. Plus, damp seeds are less likely to break apart while threshing. When the seed moisture is around 10%, there's far more breakage.

Even though letg your slowers natury tends to cost less and be lower maintenance, it's no longer always the best choice. Today, the combines and high-tture ers we use ow us to hast early and thereby further protect our cs from insects, disease and bad weather.