Most of Renee's Garden sunflower varieties are from his exuberant collection. Fortunately for home gardeners with giant sunflower aspirations, Tom has also focused on breeding the ultimate tall competition varieties " Giant Edible Sunzilla " and " Heirloom Titan ". Each year, Tom saves his longest stalk and largest seed head of this variety in his garage to measure against the following years.
He currently prizes a foot stalk and a 24 in. In this article, Tom has generously agreed to share his method of growing giants like these in your home garden. Sunflowers need full sun; see hours of direct sunlight per day — the more the better if you are trying to grow them to their maximum potential.
Choose a well-drained location, and prepare your soil by digging an area of about feet in circumference to a depth of about 2 feet. Sunflowers are heavy feeders and deplete the soil more than many other crops — especially if you are growing them to reach a massive height so the nutrient supply must be replenished each season.
Work in a slow release granular fertilizer — one that also contains trace minerals — about 8 in. Tom uses Osmocote, but since I'm an organic gardener and raise rabbits, I plan to mix in a bucketful of composted rabbit manure plus a balanced slow-release granular fish fertilizer. Depending on your soil, you may wish to add, in addition to composted manure and an organic slow-release balanced fertilizer, an organic amendment containing trace minerals such as greensand or dried seaweed.
To sow seeds, water your soil, and press seeds 1 inch deep in clumps of seeds about in. Put snail bait in a circle around the clump I like the product Sluggo because it is non-toxic to humans, pets and wildlife , and cover loosely with netting to protect emerging seedlings from birds.
If the soil is kept moist, seedlings will appear within days. When the plants grow to 3 inches, thin them to the most vigorous 3 or 4. When they are a foot tall, thin them to 2, and when they reach 2 feet high, select the best, most vigorous candidate.
The point of this gradual thinning method is to ensure that you're left with at least one good seedling in the event that predators damage any of the others. Remember, it's critical to thin back to the best single seedling if you're going for giant sunflowers. Leaving even several seedlings growing too close together will keep you from growing a giant in your garden. Feed often and water regularly.
While the plant is small, water around the root zone, about in. For larger plants, scrape out a small doughnut-shaped moat about 18 inches around the plant and about four inches deep. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. We use cookies to give you the best experience on our website. These cookies are completely safe and secure and will never contain any sensitive information. Learn more. Sunflowers grow best in locations with full sun.
They are remarkably tough and will grow in any kind of soil as long as it is not waterlogged. They do fine in soils that are slightly acidic to somewhat alkaline pH 6. Once sunflowers get started, they can tolerate drought as befits plants whose ancestors grew happily in dry prairie regions.
They are so easy to grow that they often plant themselves, springing up unbidden beneath a bird feeder. Sunflower seeds, leaves and stems emit substances that inhibit the growth of certain other plants. They should be separated from potatoes and pole beans. Where sunflower seeds are regularly used as bird feed, toxins from the accumulated seed hulls eventually kill the grass below.
Harmless to animals or people, the toxins eventually biodegrade in the soil. Contemporary sunflowers trace their ancestry to plants found at archeological sites dating from 3, BC. While they grew abundantly on the Great Plains, sunflowers were first purposely cultivated by Native Americans in the Southwest or Mississippi River valley area as a source of medicine, fiber, seeds, and oil.
When the European settlers arrived, they immediately recognized the value of sunflowers and sent seeds back to Europe. There they found a place in English cottage gardens and even Van Gogh's paintings. However, it was in Russia that the sunflower became a major agricultural crop. They provided a source of oil that could be eaten without breaking church dietary laws.
Early in the 20th Century, Russian growers spearheaded the breeding and selection for disease resistance and high oil content. In the s, the U. Long beloved as part of the rural landscape, sunflowers have been embraced by gardeners as an ornamental plant relatively recently. Responding to this interest, breeders in Germany, Japan and the U. Although sunflowers can be started indoors in individual peat pots, it is easiest to sow seeds directly into the soil after all danger of spring frost is past.
However, where the growing season is short, sunflowers can be safely planted up to 2 weeks before the last expected spring frost. Sunflowers can take a chill or two. Where growing seasons are long, it is best to wait until the soil temperature reaches 55 degrees to 60 degrees F.
Shop All Sunflowers. For maximum seed production space rows 2 to 3 feet apart. To grow smaller flowers for bouquets, space plants much closer together? Skip fertilizing. The plants will be much smaller, with fewer branches, but the stems will be longer and flower heads a good size for arrangements. Sunflower roots spread widely and can withstand some drought.
Then, after 27 days, the anthers, which are the pollen-barring parts of the plants, develop over a period of eight days. After this, it'll only be another 30 days for the sunflowers to fully mature. For sunflowers to thrive, well-drained soil, infrequent, but deep watering, and at least six to eight hours of sunlight are required. The ideal growing temperature for sunflowers ranges from 70 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit.
A soil test early in the planning process can determine whether your soil has a pH range between 6. Amend the soil according to the test results. Loosen it to a depth of least 2 feet, because sunflower roots can reach a significant depth. Kimberly Caines is a well traveled model, writer and licensed physical fitness trainer who was first published in Her work has appeared in the Dutch newspaper "De Overschiese Krant" and on various websites.
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