Is it ok to feed....

[First4uschicken]

I have organic alfalfa seeds for sprouting and they have expired recently. They no longer will sprout. I am looking for advise on whether or not i can feed these seeds to my hens?

 

[Den in Penn]

Yes you can feed them if they weren't treated. I find it interesting that the seed will no longer sprout just after the date on the bag. The expiration dates on seeds are more of a guide line. There is a downward trend in the vitality from the day a crop of seed is harvested to the point where none of the seeds will sprout, that for some plants can be quite long. On most seed packages and bags there is a best result or a packed for date on them. Most seeds will sprout at a lowering rate after that date. I had a bag of sweet corn seed that I used for about five years after the best by date. Planted it thicker then a fresh seed but it was still sprouting well when I finished the bag.