It is an ethereal sight to see a garden blooming with flowers from your kitchen window. If those flowers are sunflowers and then it is even better. Sunflowers are available in various sizes and colors that will give your garden a special look. In this article, we will inform you how to make a sunflower garden along with other tips so you can make your dream garden a reality.
1. What are Sunflowers?
The sunflower plant belongs to the family of Daisies and its botanical name is Helianthus annuus. There are more than 70 species of sunflowers. They bear flowers with bright yellow petals and have a deep brown center filled with seeds. There are annual sunflowers plants that die after one blooming season. There are perennial types of sunflowers as well that stay alive for more than 2 years and bloom every year. (See What Is Sugar Apple Fruit?)
2. Which Sunflower Varieties will grow Tall in the Garden?
Here are some tall types of Sunflowers.
- American Giant Sunflowers can reach a height of about 15 feet. They produce giant sunflowers that are 1-foot in diameter.
- Skyscraper Sunflowers grow up to 12-15 feet tall and bear 14-inch-wide flowers.
- Sunforest Mix Sunflowers have huge flowers and they grow as tall as 15 feet tall.
- Russian Mammoth Sunflowers are 9 to 12 feet tall. Their presence in your garden will attract bees, squirrels, birds, and chipmunks.
- Earthwalker Sunflowers can go up to 6 to 9 feet tall with dark-colored flowers like hues of gold, red and brown.
- Schweinitz’s Sunflowers is another variety of sunflower that can grow up to a height of 6 feet.
- Chianti Sunflowers reach a height of 4 to 6 feet and bear the darkest flowers. They produce multiple flowers in each stem and their dark red and purple flowers are pollen-free.
- Italian White Sunflowers, as the name suggests, produces white flowers with a tint of yellow in the center. They can grow up to 5 feet tall.
- Strawberry Blonde Sunflowers are 5-feet tall and produce flowers that are cream-colored at the edges and reddish-pink at the center. (See What’s the difference between annuals and perennials?)
3. Which varieties of Sunflowers produce Small Plants in the Garden?
Sunflowers come in many sizes. You can get the smallest sunflower plant growing up to only a few inches with small flowers suited for growing indoors. Similarly, giant sunflowers reaching a height of 15 feet with huge flowers are also available for your garden. You can also choose different varieties of sunflowers in your garden and experience how to make a sunflower garden as their flowers bloom at different times. Here is a list of sunflowers types that are short.
- Moulin Rouge Sunflowers can grow up to a height of 4 feet. They have burgundy red petals which do not fade away with maturity.
- Teddy Bear Sunflowers are only 2 feet tall with small petals and a fluffy appearance.
- Sundance Kid Sunflowers grow up to about 1 to 2 feet and their flowers are initially red but with maturity, they turn yellow.
- Little Becka Sunflowers are also 1 to 2 feet tall and they can easily be planted in boxes or planters.
- Suntastic Yellow Sunflowers are 20 inches tall and have 5 to 8 sunflowers in each stem.
- Pacino Sunflowers reach a height of 12 to 16 inches but their flowers are beautiful with multi-layered bright yellow-lemon-colored petals. (See 18 Purple Flowering Shrubs For Your Garden)
4. Why Light and Soil are Important to Plant Sunflowers in the Garden?
After deciding the type of sunflower, the next step in understanding how to make a sunflower garden is to plant the seeds.
- Make sure your garden receives maximum sunlight for a healthy sunflower garden. Sunlight is vital for sunflowers as they are heliotropic. They should be exposed to sunlight for 6 to 8 hours. (See Do Sunflowers Need Full Sun?)
- Soil type can be neutral to alkaline but its temperature must be above 55 degrees Fahrenheit. The pH level of the soil must be in the range of 5.5 to 7.5.
- Do not plant the seeds during the frost season because then they will not germinate.
- Plant seeds of different varieties as per their height and other qualities. Plant them in such a way that tall sunflowers don’t overshadow the smaller ones and make sure they don’t compete for nutrients.
5. How much Spacing is required in the Garden?
Sunflower seeds need space to expand their root system. How to make a sunflower garden if you don’t consider the spacing? Well, spacing should be done according to the variety of sunflowers you are growing. The seeds of taller varieties must be planted at about 1 foot from each other so they can grow properly.
If you want taller plants in your sunflower garden then place the seeds a bit closer than 1 foot. But if you want huge flowers then place them further apart from each other. Plant the seeds 1 inch below the topsoil and keep a minimum distance of 6 inches between them. You can put multiple seeds in one spot. (See How many Seeds does a Strawberry have?)
6. Do Sunflower Plants require lots of Water to Grow in the Garden?
Yes in how to make a sunflower garden, regular watering is very essential for the plants for their growth. They require a moderate amount of water but one thing you must do is to keep the soil moist in their initial growth phase. Water the root zone until they are 6 inches tall after that you can stop watering them frequently. If the plants don’t get enough water and the soil is not moist in their germination stage, then their roots will become weak. (See Does All Fruit Grow on Trees?)
7. Should Fertilizers be used in the Garden for growing Sunflowers?
Yes, sunflower plants absorb plenty of nutrition from the soil and it is important to use fertilizer to fulfill that requirement.
- You can use natural fertilizers every week to ensure the plants gain strength.
- The easiest way to let the roots absorb the fertilizer is to dig holes 1.5 feet away from the roots.
- Pour the diluted fertilizer into these holes so it can easily reach the roots.
- Apply repellents to stems to keep slugs and snails away from the plant. (See Where Do Black Olives Come From?)
8. How to Arrange a Sunflower Garden?
If you have a fenced garden then you can plant the taller sunflower plants at the back of your garden and have a sunflower wall but in the end, it depends on your personal preference.
- If you want to build a huge wall of sunflowers you can select a plant from Sunzilla, Mammoth Russian, and Giganteus variety.
- For the middle section of the garden, you can have varieties like Moulin Rouge, Teddy bears, Little Becka, Suntastic yellow, beach sunflowers, Tarahumara, and Maximilian sunflowers which grow slightly lower than the giant sunflowers.
- The shorter varieties of sunflowers are will be perfect for the front line of the garden. Varieties like Sundance kid sunflowers, music box sunflowers, and Pacino sunflowers are good choices for that. (See What is Golden Delicious Apples?)
9. Which Color of Sunflowers should be kept in the Garden?
You can keep flowers of one or many colors in your sunflower garden, the choice is yours but it also depends on the availability of seeds in your area. So consider the points below to have a complete idea about how to make a sunflower garden that looks colorful and pleasant at the same time.
- If you want a tinge of red then you can plant rose pink colored Strawberry blonde sunflowers.
- For orange, you can go for Autumn Beauty sunflowers.
- For chocolate-burgundy colors, you can plant Chocolate Cherry sunflowers. If the seeds of your preferred color of sunflower plant are not available in the store near you then you can order them online. (See Types of Trees with Purple Flowers)
We now know all the necessary information about how to make a sunflower garden. You can start planting the seeds and decorate your garden with some lovely sunflowers. (See 34 Medicinal Plants Worth Your Garden Space)
