Through data gathered from CROPLAN GENETICS® Answer Plot® locations and replicated trials, our hybrids have been selected for optimal performance in multiple markets and various growing conditions.
Performance traits and characteristics that should be considered when selecting the right sunflower hybrids include cross type, stalk strength, maturity, drought tolerance and yield potential. In addition, three critical characteristics that must be evaluated thoroughly to meet your production goals are pallet thickness, oil content, and oleic acid levels vs. oil content.
Drydown is the speed at which a sunflower dries after reaching physiological maturity. The thickness of the pallet area, or back of the head, and the tightness of the seed affect drydown. Thin pallet area and loose seed set are desirable for drydown, but a loose seed set can be undesirable if it leads to increased field losses due to shattering and possibly lower oil content.
Oil content is the percentage of oil in a sunflower hybrid relative to its meal content. For example, if a hybrid has 55 percent meal, then it has to have 45 percent oil (55% + 45% = 100%). This is a very important characteristic for oil-type sunflower because it affects the price paid for the crop. The industry currently has an oil premium that pays 2 percent of the current market price for every one percentage point over 40 percent. At higher market prices, the oil premium is very significant.
The sunflower industry uses the term “NuSun® sunflower” to describe mid-range oleic acid sunflower, which consists of 55 to 75 percent oleic acid levels. The oleic levels are independent of the oil percentages. In fact, the oleic levels indicate how much of the oil is made up of the desirable trait. NuSun® contains the type of oil desired most by snack food makers.
- Select a field in your rotation that did not include a host crop for sunflower diseases and insects the year before.
- Take a soil sample (36 inches deep) and analyze the results. Use the results to help formulate a fertility program that addresses any deficiencies identified.
- Prepare a firm, level seed bed with an adequate moisture profile.
- Select a seed hybrid with a high oil content that matches your maturity zone.
- Use CruiserMaxx™ Sunflower <link to 2.7.2> seed treatment to protect plants during early stages and to maximize your population.
- When seeding, plant at the moisture level (1½ to 3 inches deep) and do not drive faster than 4 miles per hour. Seed in the same direction as the tillage.
- Maintain your nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizer blend ratio at 2:1:2. For a 2,000-pound yield goal, keep 100 pounds of N, 50 pounds of P and 100 pounds of K available to plants.
- Control insects that get into the sunflower plant’s head and seeds. Spray early and as often as necessary to minimize damage.
- Desiccate your crop at 35 percent seed moisture to minimize damage from birds, shatter loss, stock lodging and insects.
- Harvest the crop when seed moisture is between 13 and 19 percent.