Clethodim on Sunflowers

[KSQ2]

Thinking about making a blend, or simply using whitetail institute power plant this summer. I should be able to spray everything in that blend with clethodim, I wasn’t sure about sunflowers though. Anybody tried this?

 

[cutman]

Clethodim is perfectly safe on sunflowers.

 

[KSQ2]

Clethodim is perfectly safe on sunflowers.

Thanks!

 

[Mennoniteman]

Are you putting out sunflowers for deer?

 

[KSQ2]

Are you putting out sunflowers for deer?

Possibly, in a mix. It wouldn’t be a big field, likely less than an acre.
The power plant mix:
Forage soybeans
Sunn hemp
Sunflowers
Cow peas

 

[yoderjac]

It will depend on your deer densities, but it may be hard to establish. The forage beans and sunflowers are ice cream for deer. Back when I was planting a mix of forage beans and corn, I could not get the beans to canopy until I got over 5 acres. That may or may not be the case for you depending on what other foods are available.

Eventually, I went to a mix of sunn hemp and buckwheat for summer. In my area, this worked very well. Deer use buckwheat but tend not to abuse it. Buckwheat germinates so fast, especially in warm soil, that it competes very well with summer weeds. Sunn hemp has similar nutritional value to beans. Early on, the buckwheat dominates the field but with a 50/50 mix does not smother the sunn hemp before it germinate. As the buckwheat is senescing the sunn hemp begins to dominate. The sunn hemp is a legume that fixes a lot of N into the soil for my fall plant. This mix has been working for me and I just buy bags of sunn hemp and buckwheat and mix them in my broadcast spreader. Both do well when surface broadcast and cultipacked without tillage.

Keep in mind that deer densities vary from location to location as do the other foods available for deer, so experiences will vairy.

 

[KSQ2]

It will depend on your deer densities, but it may be hard to establish. The forage beans and sunflowers are ice cream for deer. Back when I was planting a mix of forage beans and corn, I could not get the beans to canopy until I got over 5 acres. That may or may not be the case for you depending on what other foods are available.

Eventually, I went to a mix of sunn hemp and buckwheat for summer. In my area, this worked very well. Deer use buckwheat but tend not to abuse it. Buckwheat germinates so fast, especially in warm soil, that it competes very well with summer weeds. Sunn hemp has similar nutritional value to beans. Early on, the buckwheat dominates the field but with a 50/50 mix does not smother the sunn hemp before it germinate. As the buckwheat is senescing the sunn hemp begins to dominate. The sunn hemp is a legume that fixes a lot of N into the soil for my fall plant. This mix has been working for me and I just buy bags of sunn hemp and buckwheat and mix them in my broadcast spreader. Both do well when surface broadcast and cultipacked without tillage.

Keep in mind that deer densities vary from location to location as do the other foods available for deer, so experiences will vairy.

Actually, I WANT the deer to abuse it, I want to help give the alfalfa some relief. I’m not worried about having fall food, that will not be a problem with 9 acres of alfalfa.

 

[yoderjac]

Actually, I WANT the deer to abuse it, I want to help give the alfalfa some relief. I’m not worried about having fall food, that will not be a problem with 9 acres of alfalfa.

Makes perfect sense! We all have different objectives with the plots we plant. Sounds like you found a good fit for your purpose.