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Growing Sunflowers to attract birds

MeomyeMeomye Posts: 949
in Wildlife gardening
I would like to grow a couple of sunflowers for our visiting birds. Is there any particular variety that they like feasting on? If there is a slightly shorter one that would be great as I have never done this before and I have no idea how I would support a 'giraffe' sized one, how do you support yours please? tia 
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  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I don't think there's any that are better for the birds, as such @Meomye, but there are certainly some shorter varieties. It's usually better to avoid the double, 'fluffier' types just because it's easier for access.
    I don't grow them very often but I just used a cane for support when I did. If they were against a fence with trellis for climbers, I'd tie them to that. As with any potentially very tall plant, it's always better to get the support in early to avoid stems breaking   :)

    I grew a nice dark one, but I can't remember the name [as usual!]  - but if you take a look at Chilterns or Fothergills or similar, and you'll see loads of choice   :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited 7 March
    The only birds that feast on our sunflowers seem to be woodpigeons … and in their attempts they usually snap the heads off … so we gather the heads when they’re ripe and store them somewhere dry and airy for the winter … they shed the seeds  and we gather them up and put them in the bird feeders. 

    Some of the fancier types seem not to produce seeds … they’re probably sterile … so the traditional single golden ones seem to work the best … and the bees love them. 

      
    These were self-seeded into the veg patch last year. 


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • MeomyeMeomye Posts: 949
    Thank you @Fairygirl.  :)
  • McRazzMcRazz Posts: 440
    The Tits go for our sunflower heads on the plant but we generally do the same as Dove and snap them off. I lash mine to our cherry tree, it looks a bit Blair Witch but they last a good while this way and the birds love it.

    We've had finches feeding on Verbena Bonariensis and Teasel heads this winter if you're after more options.
  • MeomyeMeomye Posts: 949
    Thank you @Dovefromabove, I was hoping my little birds would like them, I could do without more pigeons!
  • Butterfly66Butterfly66 Posts: 970
    Tits and Goldfinches love Evening Primrose seeds too, we leave ours standing all winter so we can watch all the visitors
     If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”—Marcus Tullius Cicero
    East facing, top of a hill clay-loam, cultivated for centuries (7 years by me). Birmingham
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Squirrels will break them off and cart them away whole or in chunks
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • myclayjunglemyclayjungle Posts: 162
    I was going to say what B3 said!  Day to day, we don't see squirrels in the garden, they don't go on the bird feeder and have never been a problem.  When I grew sunflowers, I noticed the heads were being cut off.  I had no clue what was happening, until I saw a squirrel walking along the fence with a whole sunflower head!  I did also dry the ones left, but the birds didn't seem to bother with them!
    Coastal Suffolk/Essex Border- Clay soil
  • borgadrborgadr Posts: 718
    Snap!  Mine get beheaded by squirrels and I find them dotted around the garden, de-seeded.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    edited 15 March
    Just to let you know @Meomye, if you haven't seen the info - the forum is shutting down next Wednesday. Many of us have jumped ship to Gardeners Corner.  :)
    https://www.gardenerscorner.co.uk/LatestContent/
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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