Sunflower is part of the Helianthus genus and its scientific name is Helianthus annuus. The annuus part of this plant's botanical name means 'annual'.
Very easy to grow, great for children’s gardens and borders. Can grow to great heights (the tallest ever recorded was over 8 metres!) – however both tall and dwarf varieties are available. Great for attracting bees and birds.1
This variety typically blooms in the following colours: Canary yellow and Chrome yellow and Auburn. When mature, blooms are roughly 20.0 cm (that's 7.8 inches in imperial) in diameter.The mature flowers are of a single form. The leaves of this particular variety normally show as Grade 1 Paint Green colour. A type of edible flower / ornamental, it mainly grows as an annual plant - which means it typically only grows best for a single growing season. Sunflower is known for its erect habit and growing to a height of approximately 1.50 metres (4.88 feet). Expect blooming to occur in late spring and harvesting to start by early autumn. Sunflower is a great plant to attract butterflies and birds to your garden. Popular varieties of Sunflower with home gardeners are Mammoth, Mammoth Russian, Lemon Queen, Velvet Queen, and Evening Sun.Mexico is thought to be the country of origin for Sunflower.
Sunflower is great for inexperienced gardeners and those that like low maintainance gardens.
This plant info is provided by the myfolia gardener's wiki. All details about Sunflower have been kindly provided by our members.
How to grow Sunflower
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Full Sun
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Medium
Protect your sunflowers from moths and birds by covering the heads with plastic netting. Needs water to get established, but can tolerate mild drought after established.1
Sunflower likes a position of full sun and remember to water moderately. As a rough idea of the types of climates Sunflower does best in, check to see if your local area is within USDA Hardiness Zones 4 and 9. Sunflower requires a soil ph of 5.7 - 8.1 meaning it does best in weakly acidic soil - weakly alkaline soil. Keep in mind when planting that Sunflower is thought of as half hardy, so remember to protect this plant from frosts and low temperatures.Growing Sunflower from seed
Sow one seed per pot using a 10cm / 4 inch size plant pot and place in an airing cupboard for a couple of days until the seedling pushes through.
Try to aim for a seed spacing of at least 9.75 inches (25.0 cm) and sow at a depth of around 0.49 inches (1.25 cm). Soil temperature should be kept higher than 13°C / 55°F to ensure good germination.By our calculations*, you should look at sowing Sunflower about 21 days before your last frost date .
Transplanting Sunflower
Plant outside as soon as danger of a hard frost is past, as the young plant will quickly grow a taproot. Seedlings will tolerate temperatures down to 29 F (-1 C). Young seedlings need protection from slugs.
Seed Saving Sunflower
Covering the seed head with netting, floating row cover, or a paper bag can help keep the birds off the seeds while they ripen on the plant. As soon as you see birds going for the seeds they are likely ready to be harvested.
Companion plants for Sunflower
These plants have been known to grow well alongside Sunflower so consider planting:
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Sunflower loves Bean
Sunflower helps with the growth of beans.
Repellent plants for Sunflower
These plants will not grow well with Sunflower so avoid planting these within close proximity:
Common Sunflower problems
These problems, diseases and pests are known to affect Sunflower plants:
Sunflower Etymology
The sunflower gets its name from the Greek word “Helios” (meaning sun) and “anthos” (meaning flower) The botanical epithet is from the Latin annuus meaning “annual”
The botanical epithet is from the Latin helianthus meaning “sun-flower”
Sunflower Folklore & Trivia
Used medicinally throughout the ages for wart removal, snake bite and sunstroke treatment.
The Aztecs worshipped sunflowers – they placed sunflower images made of gold in their temples.
Is associated with the zodiac sign Leo (23 July to 22 August) because of their mutual relationship with the Sun.
The Navajo made a tea with the leaves as a treatment for feverish pregnant women.
Sunflower oil was also utilised as a skin wash.
Other names for Sunflower
Tournesol, Girasol, Sonnenblume, Slonecznik, Blodyn haul, Zonnebloem, Duwwar al shams, Suncokret
Helianthus annuus L.
Misspellings: Helianthus annus
Latest Sunflower Reviews
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20 May 2013
Mr_Uke's Tournesol 'Mammouth géant' / Sunflower 'Mammoth' was
Reviewed day 36
Tutor installation as they are getting really hish! Some were starting to crack. One of them already did and now it cant hold straight by itself anymore… They were not supposed to need tutor, but I guess that growin that big inside made them a bit soft!
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23 Dec 2011
naturedance's Sunflower 'Flash Blend' for Ms. Jean's squash bed was
Reviewed day 223
These were lovely but needed more watering baking in the afternoon sun than we gave them. Would plant again!
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23 Dec 2011
naturedance's Sunflower 'Mammoth Russian' for Squash Patch was
Reviewed day 255
Gorgeous and fun! Will plant again!
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23 Dec 2011
naturedance's Sunflower 'Flash Blend' for Ms. Jean's pole bean bed was
Reviewed day 203
Lovely! Required slightly more regular watering than our very neglectful habits. Would plant again!
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28 Sep 2011
Tralamander's Sunflowers (Giant) was
Reviewed day 171
Truly marvellous, vigorous plants. Such giant fun! Only 1 star knocked off because they were such hassle to stake. Maybe again some day though… Shorter varieties next year.
Sunflower care instructions
How long does Sunflower take to grow?
When should I plant Sunflower?
Our when to plant Sunflower estimates are relative to your last frost date. Enter your frost dates and we'll calculate your sowing and planting dates for you!
Footnotes
Popular varieties of Sunflower
Sunflower Tags
Sunflower Forums
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This group is about the joy of growing sunflowers, taking pictures of them, collecting the seeds, for eating, future ...
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