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How To

How to Harvest and Store Sunflower Seeds

Contributor
By eHow Contributing Writer
(21 Ratings)

Besides tasting great to people and birds, sunflower seeds are full of nutrients - calcium, thiamin, vitamin B-6 and folic acid.

Difficulty: Easy
Instructions

Things You'll Need:

  1. Step 1

    Cut the sunflower heads, with 2 feet of stalk attached, as soon as the backs of the flowers start to turn brown.

  2. Step 2

    Hang the heads in a dry, well-ventilated spot until the seeds have completely dried.

  3. Step 3

    Rub the dried seeds from the head and remove the hulls.

  4. Step 4

    Place the hulled seeds in plastic bags or storage containers and keep them at cool, dry room temperature for three to four months.

  5. Step 5

    Store them in the freezer for up to a year.

Tips & Warnings
  • Even if you plan to put most of the seeds in your bird feeder during the winter, leave some flowers intact for the birds to enjoy on the fly.

Comments  

muddymom said

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on 4/29/2009 Thanks! Great info...do you have roasting recipes?

susyflores said

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on 9/15/2008 thanks great information....about six sunfower plant just grew in my garden, i did not plant them, but it has giving my garden a beautiful look, now i want to propagate them next year.

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