Sunflowers

Sunflowers (Helianthus annus) are annuals (0.5-3m high) grown for their bright and colourful flowers that turn and follow the sun to get the right amount of sunlight each day to look their best They put a smile on everyone’s face as they enjoy the summer sun.

They are easy to grow and tolerant of heat and drought so a great project for kids and families. With single or double flowers, they come in iconic sunflower yellow with a black centre as well as a range of other colours including gold, white, cream or bronze tones.

They are native to Mexico and part of the daisy family, and enjoy a warm, sunny spot sheltered from wind. Stake taller varieties to support growth and flowering.

Visit your local hardware or garden centre for ideas on growing different varieties of sunflowers. Here are a few to consider:

• ‘Teddy Bear’: It is a dwarf variety growing to about 50cm, so it’s ideal for pots and containers. This is a real favourite of kids, bees and butterflies with its multi-headed Chrysanthemum-type yellow blooms.
• ‘Dwarf Sensation’: Only growing to around 50cm, it is suitable for small garden spaces and pots. Large, bright yellow flowers on a compact plant make it ideal for a great garden display.
• ‘Dwarf Sunsation’: A bright, cheerful, golden-yellow petal dwarf variety for children and families. It is a robust variety that is easy to grow (around 40cm) and quick to flower.
• ‘Golden Prominence’: A larger variety of sunflower growing to 1.5 metres high. It will brighten up any garden or vase with its striking colour contrast of yellow and bronze. This variety is quick to mature and easy to grow.
• ‘Royal Velvet’: As the name suggests this beautiful sunflower has tones of velvet bronze. Reaching a height of 1.5 metres it is ideal for larger garden spaces. A long flowering variety that is quick to grow, makes it a wonderful cheery addition to any garden.
• ‘Yellow Empress’: For a larger flower head of up to 35cm across, you can’t go past this variety. With its very large, bright yellow flowers on a tall branching plant, it is ideal as a cut flower or garden display.

As well as looking great in the garden, sunflowers are excellent and long-lasting cut flowers for a vase. In flower, they are attractive to beneficial insects including bees and as the flowers finish they may also attract seed-eating birds, especially cockatoos.

Growing conditions

Aspect Sunflowers need a bright, sunny location with sun for all or most of the day (at least 6 to 8 hours). As they are tall growers, select an area that’s sheltered from strong or damaging winds. Protect by staking larger varieties for support.

Soil Sunflowers do best with good drainage but are otherwise not fussy about soil. In areas with poor drainage, grow plants in raised garden beds (raised at least 30cm) or plant dwarf varieties in large containers in a sunny location. Use Seasol Advanced Potting Mix when planting into pots and containers.

Before sowing seeds or planting seedlings into garden beds, enrich the soil with homemade compost, organic matter and/or Seasol Super Compost. Use Seasol Super Soil Wetter & Conditioner where the soil is water repellent to ensure water gets to the plant’s roots.

When sowing seeds or planting seedlings, mix Seasol Plant + Soil Booster into the soil, and sow or plant around 60cm apart and seeds 2cm deep.

Climate As annuals, sunflowers grow through the warmer months from summer to autumn in a wide range of climates from cool to tropical. In cooler climates sow seeds after the last of the frost has gone or start early indoors on a heated mat and then transplant when they reach seedling height.

General care

Watering Water more frequently if plants are in hot, dry or exposed conditions or in containers. Once established, sunflowers will tolerate some drought conditions but they perform best with deep, regular watering.

Feeding and mulching Sunflowers respond with strong growth and flowering with a regular feed every fortnight with a liquid fertiliser for flowers such as PowerFeed PRO SERIES for Roses & Flowers. Supplement feeding with a granular fertiliser such as Seasol plus Nutrients for Roses & Flowers to keep them looking good.

Mulch with organic mulch such as sugarcane mulch, pea straw, lucerne or pine bark to match your garden’s theme. This also aids soil moisture retention and keeps weeds at bay.

Pruning and training Little pruning is needed but stake tall growing plants to avoid damage to the main stem. Multi-branching varieties will produce side branches and so flowering continues over many months. Where plants are grown for seed, remove the mature seed head with the stem attached.

Watch out Sunflowers have few pest problems, but the leaves may occasionally be attacked by caterpillars, snails and slugs (remove by hand). Plants in highly humid locations may develop rust. Plants growing without enough water may be lanky or flower prematurely.