Sunflowers

[Marko]

I love sunflowers, they are a must in my garden. This year I grew two varieties (bought from eBay), one named simply Red sunflower and Giant single head sunflower.
Red sunflower was bingo! Not the two were the same color, but they were wonderful and flowered from mid june til late september. European Goldfinches loved the seeds, I did't salvage a single one . Funny birds, they go only on red sunflowers, have never seen one on a yellow sunflower.
Giant vas really giant, 9ft high with huge flowers 1ft across, the biggest measured 40cm/1,3ft. But they were not ornamental at all, heavy heads turned downward and flowers lasted only three days. Anyway, they gave me a lot of seeds for the bird house.

[jungseed]

thanks for sharing some great pictures. really nice sunflower colors you got.

[Wi-sunflower]

Your gold Finches are diferently colored than ours but they like the same food.

I've been growing those multiblooming smaller seeded sunflowers for years for cut flowers at the markets. I do try to save seeds every year but it is a struggle to get them before the finches do.

What works for me is when the pettals are just starting to droop, you know they have been polinated. Take a paper lunch sized bag and put it over the bloom. Crunch the bag around the stem and use some "scotch" tape to hold it in place. That will give the seeds a chance to mature. Those birds eat them before they are fully mature.

But be assured that you will find a whole lot of volunteers under where the plants were this year. Those birds are very messy and drop a whole lot of the seeds.

Carol

[Marko]

Originally Posted by Wi-sunflower

Your gold Finches are diferently colored than ours but they like the same food...... Those birds are very messy and drop a whole lot of the seeds.Carol

true! Our Finches doesn't have any table manners at all! But they are so cute .

[cdbva]

Beautiful photos, Marko! I think I will have to get some red sunflowers now.

Christine

[remy]

Very pretty Marko! Your goldfinches are pretty too. I love our goldfinches too. I'm not sure our goldfinches prefer the red over the yellow. One of the neatest things I noticed about finches and sunflowers the first year I planted them years ago was is if it is nice out and they are eating the seeds and it starts to rain, they will hide under the big leaves. They will call out to each other and it sounds like the sunflowers are singing.
Remy

[icelord]

Those are nice looking, I also grew some giant sunflowers for the birds they got to be 25 ft tall!!! The birds and deer loved em the deer just bowled the stalks over. I am now searching for a sunflower I saw somewhere but cant remember where I saw it it was Purple, not maroon and not red but purple!! If anybody runs acrossed it please let me know the source.

Icelord

[b54red]

I have been growing an orange sunflower given to me by a friend, he called it a Mexican
Sunflower. They get about 6 ft tall and fairly broad with flowers all over them. The flowers are usually about 4 inches across and have bright deep orange petals and the birds and bees love them. I also have a real hard time getting any seed so if there are any seeds left in the heads I saved I'll try that bagging trick to keep the birds off.

[Farmer Matt]

Hi everyone, what is the best cut sunflowers and where do get the seeds.

Thanks,Matt

[piegirl]

B54 - I think you were/are growing Tithonia - Mexican sunflower, comes in yellow and orange/red. They have become a regular in my garden - a total, complete butterfly magnet for me. First with the swallowtails and as the monarches migrate - wow - just 100's at a time plus all the other butterflys. Don't really see too many birds and the squirrels haven't bothered too much. Definitely a keeper. One note - they don't seem to volunteer. Piegirl