black sunflower seeds

[shell3]

hi guys, ive heard loads about boss but today i found some black sunflower seeds in the store that are intended for wild birds, is this the same? can i give them to the chickens? they have shells on. if not i'll just put them on the bird table for wild birds instead. thanks

 

[Judy]

That's what I buy for my chickens. They eat them excitedly, shell and all. It did take them a little while to get used to them, though. As with many nnew foods, they seem afraid and hesitant at first.

 

[centrarchid]

Possibly the same. Local wild bird supplier markets multiple types of sunflower types. Some are like those used for table, some are black oil sunflower seed (BOSS) and some look intermediate and may even be ornamentals of some sort. My birds eat any and all but my preference is to use BOSS owing to what I perceive to be a higher oil content and less husk per unit ingested.

 

[ladyearth]

what yal think about the Royal Wing brand in the orange bag from TSC ? says on bag .. not for human consumption....
I would like to sprout some... so where is the best place to find some so I can sprout them too.....???
thamks yall

 

[subhanalah]

I believe the stuff sold for birds to eat is treated to prevent sprouting.

 

[centrarchid]

I believe the stuff sold for birds to eat is treated to prevent sprouting.

Mine sprouts.

 

[subhanalah]

Mine sprouts.

where do you get it? What's the brand name? I've been looking for some to sprout

 

[centrarchid]

All suppliers of my BOSS have seeds that sprout. Is it possible you got a very old batch once?

 

[CrossedSabers]

I got a 50# bag of BOSS at the local farm store and they sprouted nicely. First time I tried sprouting. My flock of 20 chickens was suspicious of the new food at first, but eventually decided it was OK to eat.

Here's a link to the blog post I wrote about my experiences sprouting BOSS. Hope this helps!

http://crossedsabersranch.blogspot.com/2014/04/sprouts.html


Renee