Bestselling Sunflowers

There’s no other plant that brings sunshine like sunflowers.

Heat-tolerant, pest-resistant, charming in every way, sunflowers and their big and bright yellow blossom never fails to spread positivity.

Sunflower Varieties

The genus Helianthus has about 70 cultivars divided into three groups: giant or tall, dwarf, and coloured sunflowers.

Giant sunflower varieties include Skyscraper, Sunforest Mix, American Giant and Russian Mammoth.

Dwarf sunflower varieties include Sundance Kid, Little Becka, Pacino, Suntastic Yellow, and Sunny Smile.

Coloured sunflowers have creamy yellow to deep red wine hue as seen on Terracotta, Earthwalker, Ms. Mars, Chianti, Little Tiger, Red Yearling, Floristan and Moulin Rouge varieties.

Sunflower Colors

Traditionally, sunflowers are known to have bright yellow blooms with brown centers. Its varieties, however, feature shades of yellow, copper, orange, red, and brown. There are bi-coloured varieties, too. The original yellow colour also ranges from pale to eye-popping bright yellow.

Sunflower ‘Shock-O-Lat’ is one giant sunflower with a deep, dark brown bloom like the colour of a chocolate bar encircled by golden tips. Sunflower ‘Strawberry Blonde,’ on the other hand, is a rose-pink sunflower with a dark eye and lemon yellow tips. Hungary-bred Sunflower ‘Valentine’ features primrose yellow blooms with dark brown centers.

Sunflower Meaning & Symbolism

Sunflowers carry different meanings. In China, sunflowers symbolise long life, vitality and good fortune. For Native Americans, this bright blossom represents bounty and good harvest.

Sunflowers could also mean adoration and loyalty as told by the ancient Greek mythology about Clytie and Apollo. The nymph Clytie fell in love with the young son god Apollo. The unrequited love drove Clytie to madness that she followed Apollo with her eyes as he drove his golden chariot through the sky. The gods took pity on Clytie and transformed her into a sunflower which turns its face towards the sun.

Growing Sunflowers

A location with direct sunlight is the perfect spot to grow a sunflower. This plant needs long, hot summers to bloom abundantly. It needs about 6 to 8 hours of sunshine per day.

Given its long tap roots that stretch out, sunflowers must be planted in well-dug, loose and well-draining soil. Sunflowers thrive best in slightly acidic to somewhat alkaline soil with 6.0 to 7.5 pH.

Sunflowers also need a nutrient-rich soil so nourish this heavy feeder with organic matter or composted manure.

Sunflower Plant Care

Feed sunflowers sparingly because excessive fertilization can cause steams to break. Tall species would need support like bamboo stakes. Once the plant is established, make sure infrequent deep watering is done to encourage deep rooting.

For cut flowers, the main stem must be cut just before the bud opens to encourage side blooms. Cutting stems early in the morning is recommended.

Tall vases or containers are ideal for displaying sunflowers because they need a good support for their heavy heads. Water must be changed everyday to keep sunflowers fresh.