| Author |
Garden Gate:  Growing sunflower seeds and pressing your own oil  |
|
|
happyhousewife
True Blue Farmgirl
201 Posts
Mary
North Pole
Alaska
201 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 26 2011 : 08:20:02 AM
|
| Have you ever done this? Is it worth the effort to do this at home? Bountiful Gardens sells a press in their catalog this year. |
|
|
batznthebelfry
True Blue Farmgirl
1257 Posts
Michele
Athol
Ma
USA
1257 Posts |
Posted - Feb 26 2011 : 4:36:32 PM
|
i don't know if it would be worth it, but it sure sounds like fun...For me things done the old way are always fun even when they are hard cause I now know something new...Can the press be used for other thigs as well so if you don't like doing the sunflower seeds you can use it for something else that you do or would like? Michele'
Chickens rule!
The Old Batz Farm
Hen #2622 |
 |
|
|
happyhousewife
True Blue Farmgirl
201 Posts
Mary
North Pole
Alaska
201 Posts |
Posted - Feb 27 2011 : 08:54:24 AM
|
| It can be used for other seeds too, but they have to be a certain percentage of oil. I think it could be fun. I like to learn new skills like that, just in case I ever NEED to know how. |
|
|
|
nubidane
True Blue Farmgirl
3004 Posts
Lisa
Georgetown
OH
3004 Posts |
Posted - Feb 27 2011 : 09:16:34 AM
|
Mary
There is a gal here, vegetarian farmer, Jane.
I read her blog & seem to remember her doing just that.
Here is a link to her blog, or maybe you could email her too.
http://hardworkhomestead.blogspot.com/ |
|
|
|
happyhousewife
True Blue Farmgirl
201 Posts
Mary
North Pole
Alaska
201 Posts |
|
|
countrymommy85
True Blue Farmgirl
898 Posts
Krystle
MT
USA
898 Posts |
Posted - Mar 02 2011 : 08:05:23 AM
|
I am trying out some different varieties of sunflowers to do the very same thing, except to use as fuel in our vehicles! This year is a test to see which variety grows best here, then we are going to look around for a few acres to lease so we can plant, harvest, press the seeds and use the oil for our own fuel. If prices really are going to go up higher for fuel then the press, time, and everything else involved will pay for itself even quicker! I think anything is possible with a little hardwork and perseverance :)
~We can make the world a better place for our kids and future generations by what we do today!~
http://countryrenaissance.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SunflowersAndHoney |
|
|
|
Unusual Farm Chick
True Blue Farmgirl
58 Posts
Tammie
Ohio
USA
58 Posts |
Posted - Mar 04 2011 : 2:39:07 PM
|
I am trying this exact thing this year! We are using Black oil sunflowers for growing-for the chickens feed PLUS to press into oil. I found a guy who sells oil press unit for $140 online. You can do flax seed & many others for oil pressing at home.
There is a great article online I can not find at the moment where he discussed growing sunflowers on a small plot size that would suply enough oil for pressing to last a family of 5 for a year plus extra left for supplementing animals. |
|
|
|
countrymommy85
True Blue Farmgirl
898 Posts
Krystle
MT
USA
898 Posts |
Posted - Mar 05 2011 : 09:10:25 AM
|
Tammie, could you post the link for the press? I found a few on ebay but so far the presses I have found are either too small or too large for what we are hoping to do. Soybean oil is good for fuel but I wouldn't give it to any of my animals and frankly I'm scared to grow soybeans anyways. I never thought to grow my own flax, I will have to check into that!
~We can make the world a better place for our kids and future generations by what we do today!~
http://countryrenaissance.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SunflowersAndHoney |
|
|
|
Unusual Farm Chick
True Blue Farmgirl
58 Posts
Tammie
Ohio
USA
58 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2011 : 03:35:52 AM
|
No prob Countrymomma85. This is the one we have:
http://www.network6000.com/store/html/oil-press.html
The guy who sells them is very nice. It is not a large unit but perfect for home use. His sell for $139.95 which when I was looking up a unit for us, I could not find one for our lower end budget. This fit the allowance & comes with a paper that details what seeds you can use in it. He had one unit someone sent back because they were not able to grind hemp seed in it. The seed was just too small. Think poppyseed if not smaller. This works great with the B.O sunflower seeds I bought at the dutch market { I could not have a new toy sitting around unused. lol. Had to try it out within the first week}. |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
|
|
Unusual Farm Chick
True Blue Farmgirl
58 Posts
Tammie
Ohio
USA
58 Posts |
Posted - Mar 08 2011 : 12:18:42 PM
|
This link has the info which spurred my desire for the B.O sunflower growing & oil.
http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_library/oilpress.html
I did not measure the oil from our press -only played with it the one time since this is our first year growing amounts of B.O sunflowers-
but it averages a not exact 2:1 ratio {ex. 1 cup seed averages a little less then 1/2 cup oil Just will depend on the batch of seed. It may be less then that or or right at 1/2 cup}
You need to use Black oil sunflower seeds. Hard to find seed supply for it in packets or in amounts less then 50 lbs.
We bought a small bag of the seed from a local bulk market. Most companies spray the seed if it is intended for bird seed.
This is {suppose} to prevent seed from sprouting underneath bird feeders. I did a test batch for sprouting and 75% of the seed I put in a damp paper towel {in a clear plastic zippy bag} sprouted. |
|
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
|
|
Unusual Farm Chick
True Blue Farmgirl
58 Posts
Tammie
Ohio
USA
58 Posts |
Posted - Mar 10 2011 : 09:51:04 AM
|
Honestly, I do not know more then what is wrote the article I shared the link for. lol. This is our first year doing it and what I did get during my play time with store bought seeds, I used for salad oil.
I do believe I read somewhere to keep it in a tight lid container out of light. You need to make sure your seed is dry enough for oil pressing so the water content will not contaminate/spoil your oil. I have been on the search for more at home oil pressing but everything seems to lean towards Bio diesel or large amounts such as farming style.
I wish I had more to share. I am still in the research stage since I will be doing one of Homesteading Adventure videos on growing/Pressing your own oil at home later in the year. Using a community garden plot to grow the B.O sunflowers {just not enough room here for my "experiments" all at once {doing grains too. lol}
I will come back in the future and share a link when it it all done & published. I know it will be a little late since you would like to do it this year. {sometimes I wish I could tell my brain to shut up and relax on all these projects but then I would be very bored}. |
|
|
|
Colleen Easlon
Farmgirl in Training
49 Posts
Colleen
Port Orford
OR
USA
49 Posts |
Posted - Mar 12 2011 : 12:07:05 PM
|
| I grew a bunch of sunflowers last summer, specifically for this purpose. Once the seeds were ready, I tried to look up how to make & store the oil. Everything I read said the oil would only be good for a few weeks. I could not find anything on preserving it?.. So, I ended up not finishing that project. If you know how to preserve the oil, please let me know. =) |
|
|
|
vegetarian farmer
True Blue Farmgirl
249 Posts
Jane
Freedom
pa
USA
249 Posts |
Posted - Mar 12 2011 : 12:29:23 PM
|
Hi Mary, we have been pressing our own oil for several months now. I guess to consider if it is worth it, would be how much effort do you want to put in it. It can be messy and a little time consuming, and physical if you get a hand crank (which we do because we are off grid) but we try to be as self sufficient as possible and no longer buy commercial oil, due to the fact it is becoming harder and harder to ensure no GMO's. So for us it is worth it to know where it comes from and to provide a safer and healthy product. If we had a local and organic producer this might be a different story. We have modified our press to address some issues we encountered with it, such as the flame used to heat the shaft is to close the way the press comes. We changed this and there is far less soot to deal with. We purchased the Piteba press.
Alee, it takes about two cups of Black oil sunflower seeds to make 1/2 cup of oil- give or take depending on the seed. You get a little less with flax and a little more with nuts. Since it is cold pressed it does not have a long shelf life so you will want to press as you need it. I press about one or two cups of oil at a time and keep it for a couple of weeks. The sunflower seeds will keep for over a year stored whole in shell in the proper storage container and temperature. The same with flax, nuts, and seeds. It is better to store whole and process as needed. This makes for a more nutritious product, for the longer oil sits the more it becomes a dead product.
I hope this helps.
Jane
http://hardworkhomestead.blogspot.com/ |
|
|
| |
Garden Gate: Growing sunflower seeds and pressing your own oil |
|
Growing sunflower seeds and pressing your own oil
