Sunflowers

We are well past the chance of frost in the valley so now is a good time to plant your sunflowers. In Arizona, you can plant sunflowers from April through July and enjoy the blooms nearly year-round.

I find my seeds at Walmart, Lowes or Home Depot but there are many available online, too. Sow seeds directly in the garden about 2 inches deep, 1-2 feet apart. Water regularly and mulch to maintain moisture. It takes approximately 90 days to fully grow. If planting more than a few or more than one row, wait 2-3 weeks to start the next row so they are at different heights. Sunflower seeds can be planted in large outdoor containers. too.

To grow smaller flowers to make bouquets, (that’s me!) space plants/seeds as close as 2 inches and don’t fertilize more than once. Then create a beautiful centerpieces. Everyone is a wee bit happier when faced with fresh sunflowers in the house !! These bright rays of sunshine like alkaline soil 6.0-7.5 and they’re heavy feeders so make sure you plant them in nutrient rich & weed free soil. Sunflowers have a hard time growing in compacted soil. Before planting, dig and tumble the soil to loosen, and add nutrients. A good new bag of dark rich organic soil tilled up in the area works wonders, at least for me, every time. Common fertilizer with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium will work fine for fertilizing sunflowers. The combination of the nutrients should be a 10-15-10 fertilizer. Granular fertilizer is ideal in the spring due to a slow release of nutrients over time. Liquid works well in water to occasionally apply throughout their growth. I’ve also used left-over tomato feed when I see they are going to flower. Caution: Sunflowers can begin to grow under bird feeders!! The seed hulls can kill the grass below.

Although I’ve never tried I understand Sunflowers can also be started indoors in individual peat pots.

Sunflower admirers would enjoy a summer trip to Willcox, AZ. Beside being our southern wine region, 🍷🍷 Willcox, AZ. is also known for their sunflower field.🌻🌻 You can pick your own flowers for $1 per stem or $5 for six stems.

Sunflowers need sun. Stay aware of the heat index and water accordingly but never leave them waterlogged. While they like to drink, Sunflowers love their nutrient rich soil a lot more.

If you want your sunflower to grow really tall, (up to 7 feet) it's best to plant it in the ground, you might want to stake it.

We like to plant one or two in the area that gets lots of morning sun, but it shielded from the late afternoon sun so it doesn’t fry. They look great standing alone or mixed in with shorter flowering bushes.

To dry the seeds, look at the back of the flower head. When it turns brown, cut the head off, place in a shallow container, cover with a thin cloth or paper bag (to keep birds out) and lay in a sunny spot. Once seeds are very dry, soak in salt water for around 6 hours, pour them through a strainer, pick out the seeds, lay them on paper towel or newspaper for 1-2 hours. Then bake @ 325 for 30 minutes. Drizzle very lightly with olive oil (or add other spices) and mix. Enjoy a healthy crunchy snack! You can always just strain them without water, let them dry and use as birdseed.

Sunflowers are just fun! The are a great conversation piece and require little care over all. Most people are just pleased to look at tall sunflowers.

Below are a 2 arrangements I made for my dining room., using 2 varietals of sunflowers. Because they go well with so many different colors, shapes and sizes, they are great to work with in arrangements.

GARDEN