How to Grow Sunflowers

Sunflowers are probably my favorite thing to plant, grow and harvest. It all started when I was getting married a few years ago. We decided on a fall theme wedding and I was determined to do as much as I could for this wedding myself to save money. You name it…the food, the favors, the invitations and this included the decorations as well.

But instead of using silk flowers. I wanted the real deal… So I sought out my local Walmart and in the garden center I found the seed display. That glorious seed display that I absolutely LOVE to stare at for a good 15 mins while my kids complain that I’m taking too long… and you’re just standing there thinking or maybe saying outloud…”Hush child, a creative mind is at work.”

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My love for sunflowers was now created and there was no turning back. I find them incredibly easy to start and to care for in their journey of life. Its absolutely amazing to see them germinate into a plant and then continuously grow, and grow….and grow. Especially if you planted the mammoth sunflowers that are like 8 to 10 feet tall or more. Oh! the gloriousness of them!

I have explored into planting many varieties of sunflowers. I ventured into the “fuzzy” looking ones that don’t really have a center full of seeds. Just fluff… It’s so FLUFFY! I’ve done mid height ones full of yellow, red and orange colors. They are so much fun and easy to harvest the seeds from. And of course they are BEAUTIFUL!

When to Plant Your Seeds

Sunflower seeds are pretty resistible to frost. I’ve had no problem with directly planting them in the soil come spring. I have “rows” in my garden. And I will plant 1-2 different plants in each row. I however, wont plant anything until my rows are fertilized by our wonderful Alpaca manure, and then rototilled. I am also a little OCD when it comes to looks. And every year I will edge my rows so they are easier to mow around. It is absolutely not necessary but it looks so much nicer and makes things easier in the long run.

It is estimated that they will take anywhere from 80-120 days to mature and develop their seeds, of course it all depends on the variety of sunflower you have. If you picked up your seeds from your local store, the seed packet will tell you how long till maturity and general spacing you need.

If you want your sunflowers for the fall, like how I originally needed them. (I had an early October wedding) Then pull out your calendar and count backwards from when you need them mature. I guestimated around when I should plant them and I started planting my seeds a week before my actual guess, planted more during the week I needed, and then again the week after. This gave me the coverage in case I was off as well as giving me different sizes and such. I planted as many varieties as I could for the event.

But just go ahead and stick them in and watch them grow.

What to Avoid 

Sunflowers are drought tolerant and adaptable to the condition in which they are growing in. Depending on where they are, what type of soil they are in and of course the weather. How wet is the soil? Is there proper drainage? These will all determine how well your flowers will grow and bloom.

You want to make sure your soil is nice and fertile, with regular watering. If you have it in a spot where water often collects, try to put a proper drainage in. I often dig a ditch along my troublesome areas. We have this one spot that if it rains too much, it just doesn’t drain right. This past summer we had to dig a little path to let the water flow out. Not only will it drown your plants but it really sucks to walk through it. This is also one of my many reasons I am barefoot a lot while working in my garden.

Now, if you live in a wooded area like I do, one MAJOR thing that you want to try to avoid which is nearly impossible for me, but hey, I try…is the white tail deer. I often walk into my garden to find that this years deer population all feasted on my many delicious plants.

This is a never-ending battle.

Composting 50-Plant Garden Tower
from: Garden Tower Project

Of course the obvious answer is to put up fencing. Which is completely true and if that’s what you decide make sure its the deer fencing which is quite tall cause man, those suckers can jump! Let me tell you.

I however, don’t like the look of it and we just kind of make do. We plant a lot in our garden and it never deters us from our winter freezer stock. But there are other things you can do, especially to protect the new sprouts. Cause there is more than just deer out there, there is rabbits, and birds, you name it, they all want what you are planting.

You can try some netting perhaps, which is a cheaper choice. Go ahead and get creative and try some DIY projects.

Best Location For Your Sunflowers

Full sun, of course! They are called sunflowers after all. Properly drained soil. Plant directly in the ground or place in a pot/container of your choosing. Be sure not to block the sun from your other plants though once these have grown to maturity.

We have had a few grow so nicely in a pot. I would probably recommend the smaller varieties of sunflowers for pots and containers. Last year we had a very nice sunflower pop up out of nowhere in one of our porch pots that we had a mandevella vine and a purple spikey plant (don’t actually know the proper name for this) growing in. Most likely a gift from our many wild birds, or maybe even our chippys that run around (my nickname for chipmunks) However, it was a larger sunflower that grew to the top of our porch roof, and by the fall season the pot had cracked. So that’s just something to keep in mind if you choose a container.

But can you imagine how beautiful it’ll look in your pot and maybe plant a taller annual flower in it as well, kind of like stacking your flowers. I love doing that. It fills in the blank space. Have fun with it!

Good Companions and the Bad

I generally plant my sunflowers wherever I dang right feel like. Haha. Since my garden consists of rows, every year we rotate the crop in these rows (we do this cause it helps avoid pests that like certain plants, it just confuses them a bit) But, I generally plant them wherever I have extra room.

But of course there are good companions and then the not so good companions...

• The Good: Cucumbers, tomatoes, soybeans, peppers, Corn, Marigolds
• The Bad: Pole beans and potatoes

I have found that they typically grow wherever you plant them. They’re hardy like that.

Learn How to Grow Cucumbers on a Trellis here!.

Supporting and Spacing Your Sunflowers

I kind of just let my sunflowers grow wild these last few years. I’ve been thinking about giving them some support this upcoming season. They do pretty well on their own but sometimes they will get top heavy, especially with the varieties that bloom more than one flower head, and they will start to lean over.

I think I plant mine closer together than what is proper, (I've said this before, and I’ll say it again. I don't follow the crowd) This helps them keep each other at an upright position. But I honestly just love the look of a “full” garden.

So what I do, is i have my original garden row, and i will subdivide it into another 2 rows with my hoe. Sorry for this unusual diagram....but it looks similar to this.. (===========) Then I will space them out every 3-4 inches. And whatever grows, grows.

My methods are my own but they have worked out for me so far. The only issue I have run into is perhaps my seeds being too old. I’ve had one patch that didn't grow at all but my stash was going on 3 yrs old already. And I do recommend using fresh seeds so that this is less likely to happen.

Check out my List of Flowers to Help Attract Butterflies!

Harvesting Seeds

I LOVE this part. It is so much fun to break the seeds off the flower head.
So you don't want to wait too long to harvest your seeds. Cause the birds and squirrels and chipmunks will all help themselves to the seeds. Leave the flowers on the stalks right where you left them until they have started to dry out on their own. This is when I will cut the heads off and lay them out on a table to dry completely.

If you are worried about the critters getting to them before you can. You can find something to cover them. But make sure that they are still able to breathe.

Once the flower heads have dried out, get yourself a paper plate and a baggy for each flower because they generate a LOT of seeds per flower head. I will use my fingers to kind of bend the flower head so that the seeds protrude a bit and then use my thumb to kind of pull them out. Make sure the plate is under your flower cause it's a PAIN to pick them up from the ground.

Once you are done, place them in your baggy. Label your baggy (I use Ziploc bags) with what kind of flower (sunflower), the color, the variety if you know it and what year you harvested it. Then put away in a dry place for the next planting season.

See How to Save your Seeds here!

There you have it! Make sure to just enjoy the process and take in all the beauty that sunflowers have to offer! How lovely fresh cuts will look on your counter and just think of all the cute photo ops that they will offer you!

Bee's Wrap Variety Value Pack Remix - Multi Print