PREMIER SEEDS DIRECT Giant Sunflower - Mongolian Giant - 30 Seeds

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Sunflower seeds should be planted outside in the ground as soon as the danger of a hard frost has passed to give them the longest possible growing season (and the tallest possible height. This is usually around March-May in most climates. The main secret to growing giant sunflowers is … choosing giant varieties. Not a head-scratcher, I know. But it’s really important to mention, especially for the benefit of new gardeners, that not all sunflowers are created equal. Once your sunflowers start to reach toward the sky, water them regularly with a garden hose or irrigation. Adding mulch can help the roots maintain moisture.

There are 70 different species of sunflowers around the world, with dozens, if not hundreds of cultivars, varieties, hybrids (i.e., types of sunflowers). They’re far from equal to each other in growing preferences, sizes, and colors, though, so you’ll want to study up on the selections before deciding to grow your own. We’ve categorized some of the most popular options to help you determine what you’re looking for. Read the minimal care instructions provided so you know what you’re getting yourself into with each. Tall, Giant, or Mammoth Sunflowers One of the reasons I love growing sunflowers is for their seed head harvest. Unfortunately, I share this preference with birds, slugs, squirrels and deer. The Sunny Smile Sunflower is a gorgeous miniature variety of sunflowers. Use them as potted plants for patios and porches, even as indoor plants (if they can get enough direct light). The plant flowers year-round and doesn’t produce pollen, so it’s extra friendly for plant lovers with allergies.Harvest the heads when the bracts begin to shrivel, and hang the flowers upside down in a barn or shed

Mongolian Giant’ sunflower can reach up to 14 feet tall with flowers that can get to about 18 inches across. If you decide this is the cultivar for you, definitely plant it in a location that stays sheltered from wind and storms. There are a number of different varieties of mammoth sized sunflowers available. Let’s have a look at some of the most popular varieties: there are a number of different varieties of mammoth sunflowers Russian Giant If you get uninvited deer guests to your garden, you should know that they might be attracted by the crunchy seed heads before they ripen and dry. In this case, you should plant your sunflowers in a fenced-in spot. 8. Stake your sunflowers early in the season.

Start at one edge of the sunflower head and nudge or push the seeds so that they pop out of place. As the seeds are removed, the process gets easier. Skyscraper’ sunflower is another towering giant that can grow up to 12 feet high. It produces blooms that reach 14 inches across. It takes around 75 days for this type of sunflower to reach maturity. ‘Skyscraper’ sunflowers that haven’t yet reached maturity. The large flowers produce loads of seed, and will help to feed the family, the wildlife, and hungry birds during the fall and winter months. If you’re planting more than one row, make sure that the rows are about two feet apart and the seeds are staggered along their respective rows. Make sure you space out your sunflowers to allow them room to grow.

Step one is to provide nice, loamy soil. My garden soil is terrible, so I add loads of homemade compost to the soil to gradually build it up each year. As they get taller, your Mongolian Giant sunflowers may be at risk of toppling either from wind or the weight of the flower head. Add stakes as needed or tie them to posts with gardening twine if you’ve planted them along a fence. Plant seeds between March and May for best results and ensure the plants are directly sown in locations with full sun. Florist Sunflowers I’m holding a 10 foot 2×2 next to the stalk in the picture below. As you can see, the sunflower is more than ten feet tall. A plant that grows from seed to over ten feet tall in one year is very impressive. The 2×2 pictured is 10 feet tall. The Mongolian Giant Sunflower is taller. A closer view of the Mongolian Giant Sunflowers. When you’re planting a tall sunflower variety, you should take into account its expected maximum height and the expected size of the bloom. That’s because a lot of the tall varieties have been bred for height, but not necessarily for sturdiness. A crowded out sunflower reaching for the sun.

Conventional advice is to plant them against a fence or wall and give them six-eight hours of sun a day – no easy task for urban and suburban gardens! Here are the most common large cultivars to look for if you want to get tall sunflowers topped up with large blooms: That being said, if you live in a location that receives regular rainfall, the sunflowers can be left to the elements.

Another feeding method for larger plants is to make several holes by driving a steel stake into the ground about 3-4 feet deep and about 1½ feet from the plant. Fill the holes with properly diluted liquid fertilizer. Tom uses Miracle Grow or Schulz's growing solution, but as an organic gardener, you can use properly diluted fish emulsion or other liquid organic fertilizers. If you’re curious about it too, just know that the record for the tallest sunflower (measuring 30 feet and 1 inch, which translates to 9.17 meters) is held by German gardener Hans-Peter Schiffer. I admit that I’m not a big fan of oversowing and thinning. Being a frugal gardener, especially when it comes to my seed collection, I often don’t see the point in wasting perfectly good seeds. Mammoth sunflowers will generally take the entire summer to grow from seed to bloom. However this does not mean that the plant growth is slow.Each sunflower will need plenty of room to get as big as possible, so make sure you choose a spot that can accommodate them. They do best with around 1 to 2 feet between each flower. Mammoth’ sunflower is a towering heirloom variety that can grow up to 12 feet in height. It has a sturdy trunk and produces edible seeds. This variety is also very appetizing to bees and other pollinators. Sunflowers will attract pollinators to your garden.