Overview
Sunflowers(Helianthus annus)belong to theAsteraceae plant household . The efflorescence of this plant are remarkably heavy and grandiloquent , standing on upright , hirsute , leafy stems . Sunflowers are available in sizes range from dwarf 12- to 24 - inch plants to gigantic 10 - foot plants .
bloom during the summer months and draw in raspberry and humblebee , helianthus are annuals , tight - growing and rich , especially when put up idealistic growing term . Although most sunflower are arise as annuals , some recurrent types too live .
legion varieties of sunflowers live , and the optical gadget characteristic will take issue from one variety to the next . Colors of sunflower pasture from creamy livid to shades of red , orange , gold and yellow and can include hints of brownish and green as well . There are even some motley that have unclothe flowers . Approximately , the blooms are typically between 2 to 4 inch across .
Some helianthus diverseness display a double bloom that results in a flower head that is fluffier . These diversity of bivalent - flower sunflowers have a gist that matches the yellow outer mob of blossom . Other varieties display individual - bloom . Single - bloom sunflowers tend to have a more tranquil meat that is darker in colouration than the outer ring of flush . Other varieties of single - bloom sunflower , however , have a light colored sunflower center .
The major category of helianthus admit :
Sunflowers not only attend fabulous but are also a attraction for beneficial insects . They are also great plants for children and the pocket-sized phase grow well in pots . They like humous - rich well - drained soil , and in a very sunny position they will prosper . helianthus will make a nifty cut prime for flowered arrangements and bouquets and are best used directly outdoors as a margin plant , along private road & fence or in fields by the good deal .
Giant/Large Sunflowers Varieties
Skyscraper Sunflower
Skyscraper is spectacularly Brobdingnagian and tower character of Sunflower that typically get 4 - 5 measure in high spirits . This garden goliath has strong , hardy straw with dark green leaves and blooms from top to bottom . The leaf usually extend 2′ from the still hunt ; it produces blooms that can get as prominent as 14″ in diameter .
The petal are bright jaundiced with an orange to dark-green disk . This variety is heat - tolerant , drought - resistant and performs well when uprise in the hot summertime months . Once the plant are done bloom , the jumbo seed may be saved for roasting .
American Giant Sunflower
American Giant Hybrid Sunflower is sure to impress with its monumental height and supersized heyday heads . This intercrossed sunflower variety will grow up to 14′ improbable on average , and can get as great as 17 foot tall . Unlike some of the old jumbo sunflower mixed bag , these wo n’t fold in windy weather . They have thick , strong stalks that allow them to keep standing , even in impractical and rainy condition . The flush head on this variety are giant as well . Blooms can get as magnanimous as 1′ in diameter and will tend to develop larger when given more space .
Russian Mammoth Sunflower
Mammoth Sunflower is an heirloom , open - pollinated sunflower miscellany that produce predominate stalk that can grow to 12′ tall . The sunflower chief are also gigantic as they ’ll average 8 - 14″ in diam with golden - yellow petals surrounding a dark chocolate central disk .
Also Read : Types of Hibiscus Flowers
Arikara Sunflower
name after the aboriginal American kinship group that grew it as food , medicinal and ceremonial plant , it is gentle to produce and sensory at the back of a cheery border . Arikara helianthus is a tight - grow annual with broad , ellipse to heart - form , approximative hairy leaves . In summer , it produces large , unmarried and multi headed flower , up to 12 - 16 inches across , with brilliant Orange River or lily-livered petal surround a usually obscure umber key disk .
Mammoth Grey Stripe
Mammoth Grey Stripe is a giant smorgasbord boasting immense flowers , up to 8 - 12 column inch across with brilliant prosperous - yellow flower petal surrounding a dark hot chocolate cardinal platter . This variety grow strong , tough stalks that can get as marvellous as 12′. Plant a wrangle of these to create a wind - break or shaded area around your garden or homestead .
Kong Giant Sunflower
Kong Giant Sunflower is a hybrid sunflower variety that towers above the residuum . This gargantuan helianthus assortment produces plants that can get as marvelous as 17′ feet . The thick , strong stalks bring about stacks of leaf with branch and blooms all along the main stalk . The blush average out 10″ in diam . This is a tight - grow variety that knead great for garden borders or hedging row . It also play outstanding as a secondary trellis once the plants are done blooming .
Also Read : Types of Fern Plants
Schweinitz’s Sunflower
Schweinitz ’s sunflower usually grows to about 6.5 human foot and sometimes reaching tiptop of 16 feet . The helianthus produces genus Tuber and rhizome underground . Its theme are purple and usually solitary , branching only at or above mid - root . Its leaf are deep and stiff , be given to swag towards the end . The sunflower is perennial , and flowers for about two to three weeks in other October .
Dwarf Sunflower Varieties
Dwarf sunflowers are great for raised beds or container gardens . Dwarf helianthus are also great for inter - planting in the vegetable garden as they wo n’t shadow other works due to their small-scale size .
Suntastic Yellow Sunflower
Suntastic Yellow helianthus is a nanus , well - prongy annual boasting a richness of large blossoms up to 6 column inch , invest with bright golden petals and chocolate brown centers . Blooming in summer over three sequent periods , it produce up to 20 blossom per plant and will flower in less than 65 days . Suntastic yellowness is very floriferous and sodding for pot , container , window boxes or low bedding .
Teddy Bear Sunflower
Teddy Bear Sunflower has unique , duple blooms that are soft , velvety and resemble the coating on a teddy bear . Blooms average 6 inch diameter and have a recondite yellow people of colour . This is a midget sunflower smorgasbord that get plants around 2 - 3 inch marvellous . They work out dandy when get in the ground or in containers . The height of the mature industrial plant will diverge count on the sizing of the container used for growing .
Teddy Bear Sunflower is a great cutting peak potpourri as it adds beautiful color and texture to any mesa redolence . It ’s also a swell pollinator attractor for vegetables garden , increasing yields by attracting more good and pollinating dirt ball . Sunflowers work great when planted on the border of the vegetable garden as it provides beauty and brings plenty of bees for pollinating veg plants .
Firecracker Sunflower
Firecracker Sunflower is a intercrossed , pollenless variety that produces beautiful , bi - colored blooms on compact plants . This is a semi - dwarf variety that average out 4 - 6 in tall , make it a great option for container or small - exfoliation garden . It also makes a groovy border plant in heavy plantings .
Firecracker Sunflower is a branching variety that can produce up to 10 flower at a fourth dimension . The peak have a benighted magnetic disc and bi - coloured petals that have a crimson interior and yellow exterior . Each bloom has a tenacious fore , making it an ideal variety for gelded flush production .
Also Read : Types of Palm Trees
Sunspot Dwarf Sunflower
macula Dwarf Sunflower is a shorter helianthus miscellany that produce enormous blooms relative to the stature of the plant . These gnome helianthus plant life mediocre 2 - 3 feet tall but produce blush that can easy average out 10 - 12 inch diameter with burnished golden and orange petals surrounding chocolate brown centers . Plants are full of fleeceable foliage and make a great ground cover when plant densely . This variety is drouth - tolerant but prefers full sun for optimal growth .
Sungold Dwarf Sunflower
Sungold Dwarf Sunflower is a brusque helianthus motley that grow to 2 - 3 foot marvellous . plant produce payload of 4 column inch bivalent blooms that have yellow flower petal all the way towards the center of the flush head . bloom have a piano texture and are standardised to the Teddy Bear variety . gnome sunflowers are outstanding for raised beds or container where a shorter plant pinnacle may be trust .
Mardi Gras Dwarf Sunflower
Mardi Gras Dwarf Sunflower contains a vibrant mix of yellow to dark red petal variations that makes an eye - catching add-on to any garden . This is a dwarf sunflower variety that pass on 2 - 3 feet magniloquent . The smaller height is heavy for raised bed or container .
Dwarf sunflowers are also great for cut prime because the head wo n’t droop as much when to the full flower . Mardi Gras Dwarf Sunflower is a multiple - ramify smorgasbord with bloom that average 5 inch diam . Petals may be entirely dark red or will have a unaccented red to the dark red interior with a white-livered outside .
Santa Fe Sunset Sunflower
Santa Fe Sunset Sunflower is a intercrossed , pollenless sunflower diversity with deep burgundy flowers . This variety works great for cut prime production , but will also pull pollinators to the garden for increase veggie output . Plants reach 5 - 6 feet tall and produce prominent blooms with striking color .
Once the main bloom are harvested , industrial plant will carry on to produce side shoot and additional blooms . sunflower work great when planted on the molding of the vegetable garden as it provides beauty and bring mass of bees for pollinate veg plants .
Italian White Sunflower
helianthus are sensational yearly or perennials which vary in height , heyday sizing and people of colour . This is a midget sunflower variety that create plants around 2 - 3 inch tall . Well know as being easy to grow , where there is room for them , they make a sheer and impressive display . ‘ Italian White ’ sport big creamy white efflorescence with deep hot chocolate center .
Also Read : change of Black - eyed Susan
Medium-sized Varieties
Silverleaf Sunflower
Silverleaf helianthus is a average size , multi - branching motley of helianthus with a magnificient foliation of silver felted leaves and a cornucopia of cheery lily-livered flowers , up to 4 inch wide , each adorned with a umber center . One plant can produce up to 1 - 5 flower heads . super long blooming from mid - summer until frost , the blossoms are particularly attractive to goldfinches as they move to eat the seed flat from the seedheads .
Woodland Sunflower
Woodland Sunflower is a showy rhizomatous variety of helianthus with sessile or suddenly - stalked leaves , 6 inches foresightful and a profuseness of lily-livered flowers 2 inch across , each adorned with up to 8 - 15 yellow rays and a darker yellow heart and soul record . Blooming from other summer to descend , they are brook atop tall , liquid fore and are attractive to bee , butterflies and other pollinator . The woodland helianthus is normally establish in most to moderately moist and sandy to loamy flaxen sphere .
Low-Down (Willow-leaved Sunflower)
Willow - allow for Sunflower is a vigorous clump - forming perennial boasting upright stem clothe with narrow , arching , willow tree - like leaves , 5 - 7 inch long . Blooming from recent summer to late fall , showy atomizer of brilliant lily-livered daisies , up to 3 inch across , adorn with a dark chocolate inwardness magnetic disk . Willow - leaved helianthus is suitable for a traditional recurrent border and is attractive to butterfly and other insect pollinators .
Also Read : Types of Black Flowers
Swamp Sunflower
Swamp Sunflower is a showy perennial forming a clump of tall and stalwart , green to purplish pubescent stems . They boast a profusion of vivid golden - yellow flowers 2 - 3 inch across from twilight to frost . Each flower features 10 - 20 yellow narrow , pointed ray surrounding a purplish - brownish disk . The narrow willowy foliage are hairy and point at the pourboire . Swamp sunflower grows from a branched , colonizing crown that spreads outward at a moderate rate . It is suitable for rainwater gardens or along streams and pool .
Western Sunflower
Western sunflower is a showy perennial shape a rose window of large , egg-shaped , average green , basal leaves . Blooming for an extended geological period from mid - summer to go down , a cornucopia of elegant star - like flower 2 inch wide are tolerate on upright , almost naked , stem . Each efflorescence stalking terminates in 1 - 12 flowerheads that are usually arranged in a panicle .
The flowers are particularly attractive to birds as they love to eat the seed directly from the seedheads . Because of its prominent basal leaves and nearly defenseless flowering stalks , this repeated wildflower has a very discrete appearance among the Helianthus ssp .
Maximillan Sunflower
Maximillan sunflower is a branching perennial plant , originate from a stout rhizome and reaches heights from 1.7–3.5 feet . The slender , tall , erect stems and alternately - arranged leafage are cover in jolty haircloth . The lance - shaped leaves are minute , steer , folded down lengthwise , and up to 30 centimeter ( 12 inch ) long on large works .
The flower heads are surrounded at the stand by pointed green phyllaries which often stick direct out and curl at the tip . The nitty-gritty is fulfil with yellow tipped brown disc florets and the circumference is line with bright yellow ray florets 2 to 4 cm long .
Also Read : Types of White Flowers
Colored Sunflower Varieties
Joker Sunflower
Joker Sunflower is a intercrossed , pollenless sunflower variety that is the perfect “ barbarian carte du jour ” for your garden . This variety has a unique , double starburst pattern on large , 6 - 8 inch blooms . Joker work big for attracting pollinators to the veggie garden , but is also ideal for cut - flower posy because the blooms are pollen - free .
Plants grow to 6 - 7 ft tall , which makes this a dandy selection for a border plant life around the garden . Joker Sunflower plants are branching and will continue to create additional heyday throughout the growing time of year . The bombastic flower head have a fuzzy , brown disk in the center with a slight yellowed periphery surrounding the disc . The petals have a maroon center and are topple with yellow-bellied to allow a mythical , centre - catching appearance .
Chocolate Cherry Sunflower
Chocolate Cherry Sunflower is a branching variety with dour burgundy petals and a chocolate - colored disk . This sunflower variety average a maximum height of 6 - 7 feet and will bloom incessantly for 4 weeks . Chocolate Cherry is a dandy alternative for pollinator gardens or cut - flower production .
The stunning , dark peak will attract pollinators and other good insects to your garden . This variety work out with child as a border planting around the sharpness of the vegetable garden to increase pollenation and reduce harmful insect press .
Floristan Sunflower
Floristan is a well - branched annual self-praise a cornucopia of large , bicolored blossoms adorned with cerise - brown petals tipped in golden - chickenhearted and a chocolate brown inwardness . blossom throughout the season , this helianthus is gross for containers or the cheery borders and well suited for trimmed flower yield .
Evening Sun Sunflower
Evening sunlight is a tight - growing , well - branched yearbook with oblong to lanceolate leaves and flowers that are reminiscent of a smart as a whip sundown . From summertime to descend , it produces a profusion of bombastic blossoms up to 8 - 10 inch across , adorned with warm copper to mahogany petals and a dour chocolate primal magnetic disc . The efflorescence head teacher are attractive to bees , butterfly stroke and bird .
Also Read : Types of Begonia
Strawberry Blonde Sunflower
Strawberry Blonde Sunflower is a tight - grow , well branched annual with oblong to lanceolate leaves . It is typically considered as one of mesmerizing diversity of sunflowers , it feature pink and burgundy colors as well as jot of yellow , around the dark disk . The flower petal melt into yellow shadiness as they move away from the center . It almost looks like a sunset bursting from every flower . The flower heads are attractive to bees , butterflies and birds .
Ring of Fire Sunflower
Ring of flak is a fast - grow , well branched annual with oblong to lanceolate leaves and peculiarly beautiful efflorescence . In summer it make a cornucopia of large flower , up to 5 in across with golden petal edges and a ring of mahogany - red skirt the chocolate dark-brown center .
Gypsy Charmer Sunflower
Gypsy charmer grow between 4 to 6 foot marvellous . It bloom for weeks and is an bewitching sunflower for the garden and the vase . In summertime it grow a profusion of large bloom up to 6 - 8 in cross with multicolored petal , a wonderful mix of brilliant yellow , rosy - red and Citrus limon scandalmongering . The flower head are attractive to bees , butterflies and birds . It ’s great for small interracial bouquets or just as a colorful emphasis in your garden .
Claret Sunflower
Claret sunflower is one of the darkest sunflower grow between 4 and 6 feet tall . Velvety hot chocolate petals , some streaked with furbish gold , peculiarly on the backs are the hallmarks of this capital sunflower . The seeds harvested from grown plant are comestible and can be used in snacks and in baking . Other than grow at the back of a sunny border , this sunflower variety makes outstanding cut flower too .
Also Read : Types of Bamboo Plant
Terracotta Sunflower
crude fall wraith of rusty red , burnt orange , and tip of glowing gold make up the pallet for Terracotta sunflower . Nicely branching , 5 - 7 foot . tall flora bring forth many pollen - detached , 4 - 7 inch flowers that open up recondite red and acquire into warm orange and brown tones as the flowers age . The undersides of the petals are glossy and flame - like . Terracotta helianthus was a success in our test garden for high rich colour and long - last flowers , both on the plant and for cutting .
How to Grow Giant Sunflower Plants
Importance of Sunflower In The Garden
Conclusion
sunflower are one of those species that really do mark every box . esthetically , they are as showy and dazzling as they come . Practically , they are improbably loose to grow , with really good ohmic resistance to drought and pests . Economically , you’re able to grow slews of them from source for less than the price of a dry pint and , if you preserve the I you grow , you’re able to produce hundreds more the next year . Yet perhaps the cause they are n’t as democratic as they merit to be is that few people are aware of their tremendous diversity , which goes far beyond the giant , dwarf and coloured types that immediately add up to heed .
