Sunflowers take some time to grow from the seedlings and ever since you plant those seeds, you will be excitedly waiting to see those flowers growing up. However, they make exquisite sprouts as well and that might be the favorite food for a lot of other animals. So, if you are planting the sunflowers you will need to be careful about the sprouts as well. The sprouts need to be taken care of and there are a number of things that you will need to save them from.
If your sunflower sprouts are mysteriously vanishing, they are definitely being eaten by some of the animals around the garden. Of course, the situation can be remedied but you will need to figure out what is eating your sunflower sprouts to save them from any sorts of mishaps before they can grow into sunflower and have some flowers grown on them. So, a few things that you will need to ensure and check upon in order to ensure that you can keep your sunflower sprouts safe and growing are as follows.
What is Eating My Sunflower Sprouts
1. Birds
There are a number of birds that love to feed on the sprouts and seedlings. You will need to make sure that you are taking appropriate measures for the protection of sunflower sprouts while they are young to save them from the birds. A net over them that is small enough to not let the birds pass through and has the ample space between the mesh for sunlight to come across is all that you are going to need.
You will need to be various of the birds like sparrows, blackbirds, and cowbirds that might be the problem and you will be able to ensure a healthy growth routine for these sprouts and they will get to grow into fully grown sunflower plants that will have flowers on them as well. This might be just the perfect thing that you are going to need in order to have the right growth experience for them.
2. Animals
If you’re wondering what is eating my sunflower plants, there are also some small animals that love feeding on these sprouts and they can graze them up as well. You will need to be particularly careful about them as well. It might not be easy to determine if the birds are feeding upon your sprouts unless you catch them or see them, but these animals can be traced and you can fix the problem as well.
Chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits, woodchucks, and deer are the most common animals that might be feeding on your sprouts so you will need to be careful about them. It is pretty easy to avoid them and you will need to install a fence that is high enough for any of them to climb across. The fence also needs to be snuggly or made up of something slippery so the squirrels are unable to climb on it and get on the other side. That would be just the perfect way to ensure that your plants are not being eaten away by any of these animals and you will be able to grow the sunflower sprouts properly into plants.
3. Insects
Insects are most easy to trace as they cannot eat the whole leaf or a sprout and they tend to make holes in the leaves or there might be some cuttings on the edge. That is caused by worms like snugs, snails, or some other pests and you will have to ensure that you are getting rid of them for the optimal growth of your plants. It doesn’t take much to have them removed and you will need to get some strongly scented pesticide that will keep them away from your sprouts.
Make sure that you are getting some organic pesticide that is not going to mess up with the plants and cause any side effects on the growth as the seedlings are pretty sensitive while they are growing and that can cause you to have a number of problems with these sprouts while they are growing up. There are also some home made pesticides that might be the best remedy for all of them to keep these birds and insects away and you can figure the best solution for you to keep the plants safe.