For an agricultural operation to thrive, producers must sometimes look at the big picture and make decisions to benefit the long-term success of their farm or ranch. Changes made on a farm now might take years to realize their positive effects, but those changes can be crucial to the farm’s survivability.
A bee pollinates a sunflower near Groton, SD, in late July 2026. Sunflowers grown in a rotation with cover crops have been shown to have a higher sugar content in their nectar, which is beneficial for pollinators.
A field of sunflowers grows near Groton, SD, in late July 2026. While sunflowers are rare in the eastern portion of the state, they are still a viable crop and a beneficial addition to traditional crop rotations.
These ears of corn were taken in 2024 from the long-running crop rotation experiment at the North Central Agricultural Research Laboratory near Brookings, S.D. The ears on the left were taken from a corn-soybean rotation. The ears on the right were taken from a corn-soybean-spring wheat-sunflower rotation. This comparison shows a yield advantage for corn grown in the diverse four-year rotation that includes sunflowers.
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Onida, S.D., producer Chuck Todd is the president of the National Sunflower Association and chairman of the South Dakota Oilseeds Council. He believes that sunflowers can be a profitable addition to crop rotations in eastern South Dakota.
This photo shows a female red sunflower seed weevil. The weevil’s bodies are dark in color but are covered with reddish-orange hairs. They have an elongated snout with antennae that originate from the snout.
