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  • From: pam AT twinoaks.org
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Market-farming] Re:Sunflowers
  • Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 19:27:32 -0400

I was relieved to see Bill Shoemaker say he has known commercial
growers follow sunflowers without noticeable problems. I've been
adding sunflowers here and there among the veggies to attract
beneficial insects and birds. It started when my seed order arrived
with burst bags of beans and sunflowers! Some of the sunflowers
came up in the bean rows, and they made convenient landmarks
when picking long rows. Also something to enjoy. Then I decided to
continue this combination. I've seen no damage to the beans,
although one of my co-workers does have this concern. I do pull off
the lower leaves to reduce shading.
I have also, intentionally, put sunflowers in the asparagus
patch, hoping to attract something to eat asparagus beetles. No
evidence that it worked, but no evidence of harm either.
The third place I grow sunflowers is at the south edge of the
garden near the parking lot. This makes a shady patch for sowing
lettuce seedlings in summer. Here I have noticed a problem. Those
big sunflowers suck up a lot of water! It's not so good to try to
germinate lettuces right directly under the sunflowers, but it works fine
18" away from the stems. The sunflowers screen the veggies from the
car fumes, I hope. Also, we enjoy the goldfinches that come for the
seeds.
Pam Dawling, Twin Oaks, Louisa, VA zone 6b
> I'm not aware of any real allelopathy in sunflowers. I've known
> commercial
> growers to raise sunflowers on significant acreage (60 -200) and
> follow that with soybeans or corn the next season with no impact on
> the following crop. It could be that the reason that the previous
> writer observed problems with germination of other seeds had nothing
> to do with allelopathy. I'm sure that sunflowers do not produce
> juglone, the allelopathic compound in black walnut.
>
> Bill Shoemaker






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