SUNFLOWER SPECIFIC HEADERS
Growers often debate the return on investment of a sunflower specific header. Combines used for small grains can be adapted to harvest sunflowers. While a row-crop header can be used without modifications, platform and corn headers require some modifications including catch pans, a deflector bar and a small reel. Alternatively, a rotating drum can be used to replace the deflector bar and reel.
According to Lee Moran, a sales and project manager at Hamilton Systems, farmers using headers designed specifically for harvesting sunflowers, such as the Fantini sunflower and sorghum headers he sells, see an average of 300 to 600 more pounds per acre in the combine.
“If you use today’s numbers, either in the NuSun® or high oleic markets, at 300 pounds an acre at 18 cents, gives a grower a $55 per acre bonus for preventing seed loss,” says Moran.
To reduce seed loss at harvest, Moran says his biggest tip for farmers involves settings. “Make sure your harvesting equipment is running as close to, if not the same as, the feederhouse on the combine,” he says.
Although sunflower headers generally require little upkeep, Moran also suggests checkups twice per growing season. “We want to make sure the chains are tight and everything is lubricated well at the beginning and end of the year,” he says.
Brandy Edland, a sales representative for Sheyenne Tooling and Manufacturing, also believes yields are increased and field losses are decreased by using headers designed specifically for harvesting sunflowers. Out of all the steps associated with sunflower production he feels harvesting gets the least attention.
“Growers tend to use old technology adapted to work for sunflowers. They put so much time, money and effort into raising sunflowers but then harvest them with something adapted to do so, and it does a mediocre job.”
His company sells Sunmaster headers, which are high capacity sunflower headers. He’s done the math, and figures the header pays for itself just by decreased field losses.
“About two years ago, when we did the math, you could buy a Sunmaster off the loss in about a few thousand acres. There’s not much on the farm that can do that,” he says. “We advertise a 10 percent yield increase, but we see a lot higher – which is huge. Ten percent is a big deal.”
These headers work miracles under adverse conditions, according to Edland, such as harvesting downed crops. The snouts are designed to get underneath the sunflowers to stand them back up for harvesting.
Grower Perspectives
From the get-go, Texas producer Steven Beakley has used a combine header designed specifically for harvesting sunflowers. He says it has more than paid for itself in efficiency. In fact, he once borrowed a neighbor’s all-crop header to determine if the expense on his unit was justified. He wasn’t disappointed.
“The first year we grew sunflowers, we wanted to plant enough to justify spending the money to grow them right. Through research, we came across the Fantini sunflower header. What’s fantastic about it is you have zero header loss. It does a wonderful job gathering your crop and getting it through the machine without loss. I compared the two [headers] and I think [the Fantini] pays for itself,” says Beakley.
Having a decent header for the combine makes a big difference to the bottom line, says Mark Keller, grower near Tintah, MN. “You’ll have less header loss if you don’t run these all-crop heads.” Last year, Keller invested in a specific sunflower head instead of using a straight head and bolting pans on it, or putting an after-market kit on a grain head.
“If you’re going to raise enough sunflowers, invest in a sunflower header if you have the acres to justify it. You will have less header loss. If you raise enough acres of soybeans, you buy a draper head, if you’re going to raise ’flowers, invest in a good sunflower header.”
COMBINE ADJUSTMENTS
Minor adjustments to combines can also make a big difference at harvest. To attain optimal yields and reduce field losses, the following combine adjustments should be considered:
- Combine speed should average between three and five miles per hour (4.8 to eight kilometers per hour)
- Cylinder speeds can range from 300 to 500 revolutions per minute
- Concave settings should be open (cylinder- to-concave spacing of one inch at the front of cylinder and ¾ inch at rear)
- Using the slowest cylinder speed with the largest concave opening results in reduced seed damage
- Adjust fan to accommodate sunflower seed, which is lighter than other grains, so that air flow just keeps trash floating across the sieve
