Sunflowers put smiles on people's faces and glossy coats on dairy cows, which puts a big smile on Mike Collis' face.
The Eketahuna farmer spends just $230 for his sunflower seed and the positive vibes stretch far beyond his paddock. Mike plants sunflowers in conjunction with plantain, chicory and leafy turnips, but it's the tasty sunflowers that are his herd's tucker of choice.
"With a multi crop, if one fails, I've got back-up. But the sunflowers are the first things the cows eat in the crop paddock," he said.
![Mike and Tracey Collis' dairy herd chomp into their sunflowers, which are part of a mixed crop of plantain, chicory and leafy turnip. The sunflowers give the cows a glossy coat.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/TOHHWNTFURIF2B3MSHQV54KF54.jpg?auth=a2db7d802a832891b3fc48be469c6dd97219c070f1482a73d37b6c89d8e236ad&width=16&height=12&quality=70&smart=true)
"The cows look great, their coats become glossy and pure black. It's nice to see them looking so good."