Tag Archives: sunflower seeds

Allelopathic Sunflower Seeds

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As the weather turns chilly and bird feeders go up, here’s a new word for you…..ALLELOPATHY.

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Allelopathy is where an organism releases natural chemicals that affect the growth of other organisms. How does this apply to your bird feeder? Sunflower seeds. It turns out that many sunflower species, including those used for bird seed, are allelopathic to many other plants, so much so, that they are used as natural weed control. The chemicals contained in most parts of the sunflower, including the roots, seeds, and seed hulls, naturally block the growth of other plants. Basically, the sunflower wages chemical warfare against competing plants. The main allelopathic chemicals that sunflowers produce are terpenes and phenolic compounds. So, bear this in mind when placing your bird feeder (and when growing sunflowers in your garden). Dropped sunflower seeds and hulls, if allowed to build up under your feeder, will kill off most other plants. Plus, it’s always good to keep the area under your feeder tidy to avoid enticing unwanted visitors like rodents, raccoons, skunks, and more.

Backyard Birds: Red-breasted Nuthatch

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Red-breasted Nuthatch:  Red-breasted Nuthatches are tiny colorful song birds. At the bird feeder they like to eat peanuts, sunflower seeds, nyjar seeds and suet.  During the summer, they eat mainly insects, beetles, caterpillars, spiders, ants, and earwigs. Red-breasted Nuthatches breed and winter throughout Oregon. They live in conifer and mixed hardwood forest and in winter they can be found in woodland areas from the valley floors to the mountains.

Photo by Kathy Munsel, Oregon Dept. Fish and Wildlife