Q&A for How to Harvest Sunflower Seeds

To prevent mold, you must dry them completely first.

Of course. Set some of the seeds apart from the other ones after washing and drying, and just put them in a different airtight container and put in a dark place or in the fridge. They last around 6 months unroasted.

No pollination happened.

Collect them, wash, dry completely, and store in paper bag in cool dark area or in the fridge.

Mammoth sunflowers produce both pure black and striped seeds. This is normal.

Yes, they should be fine, though they may not be great quality.

Not just yet. Let them dry out completely before collecting the seeds. Put the heads in a brown paper bag or cheesecloth, leaving around 6 inches of the stem sticking out, then hang them outdoors - or keep them indoors in a cool, dry place.

Put it in your mouth, bite it in half and open it or put it in your mouth and bite it. Then open it with your tongue and the inside swallow it and spit out the outside. With practice, this will become an easy and fast practice.

You could, but in my experience, it's not necessary. I have left sunflower seeds unfrozen for years prior to planting them, but they still grew and flowered just fine. You could try freezing half of the seeds and drying the other half in an airtight container.

Just wash and dry them, then seal them in an airtight bag and freeze them.

No, it's not necessary.

Follow the instructions listed in the article above.

I read that you can set your hand grinder to 1/8 setting to extract oil, but you may have to adjust to the size of the seed. Heat the seeds until they're warm, place them in the press, and press.

You should be fine without roasting them, but I would suggest you shell them.

It depends. If the seeds were already developed and were ready to harvest or very close, then great. If not, you can't harvest them.

If you are not worried about the seeds, then whenever! Though I would wait until their prime time of blooming is over.

You can, but if you're concerned about organic seeds and the use of commercial pesticides it would not be recommended, since you wouldn't know how or where they were cultivated.

Use a "USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map" as a guide for all planting in the USA, also available for Canada and Worldwide. Search: planting zones hardiness map, also seed planting schedules. Almost all Seed Packets tell what months are best to plant seeds. Seeds can also be sown in dirt in small pots etc., and started inside any time as long they are protected from cold, too much rain, etc. Search: "How to Start Seeds / Germinating Seeds." Then when all danger of frost is gone in your area, plant established seedlings outdoors.

Not yet. Wait until petals have wilted, then examine again. If not darkened, they may never get so. Check that the shell of the seed is hard, then collect.

They did not have sufficient time to develop or pollination didn't happen properly. Leave sunflower heads on the plants even after they're dropping to ensure seeds reach full maturity.