Can i plant sunflowers in july

Step 1: Decide on the proper timing When to plant sunflowers indoors depends on when your last spring frost occurs. Here in Pennsylvania, our last spring frost is usually around May 15th. Step 2: Sow the seeds I like to use peat pellets for planting sunflower seeds indoors because there is no root disturbance when you move them out into the garden. Plus, peat pellets are easy to use. But a pot of potting soil works just as well for starting sunflower seeds. Sow one seed per peat pellet or small pot.

Plant to a depth of a half inch. Cover the seed with soil and water it in. Use grow lights and keep them inches above the tops of the plants.

Run them for hours per day. Step 4: Care for the seedlings Keep the seedlings watered and fertilize once a week with a liquid organic fertilizer. Step 5: Move the plants outside Another downside of using this method of when to plant sunflowers is the need to slowly acclimate the seedlings before transplanting them outdoors full time.

About a week before your last frost is expected, take the seedlings outside for a few hours every day. For me, this is the easiest and most practical way to grow sunflowers. The seeds are sown directly out into the garden. You get to skip the grow lights, acclimatization, transplanting, and general babying your sunflower plants. This is the tough-love version of growing sunflowers. The biggest downside to sowing sunflowers outdoors is the pests.

Birds, chipmunks, and mice enjoy eating the seeds, and slugs, bunnies, and deer sometimes nibble on the plants themselves more on managing these pests later. I always over-plant, knowing that I may lose some of the plants to these critters. Step 1: Decide on the proper timing When to plant sunflowers outdoors depends on your last average frost date, just like it does when starting the seeds indoors.

Except you can delay the process by a month or more. I start planting sunflower seeds within days of my last frost date, and I continue to sow more seeds for several weeks beyond that date. This gives me a staggered bloom time and keeps my garden colorful for the longest amount of time.

Remove any weeds and cultivate or turn the soil over a bit to loosen it. Average garden soil is just fine for these tough plants. Step 3: Plant the seeds Sow the sunflower seeds directly into the garden soil.

Use a trowel to dig individual holes about 1-inch-deep, or dig a trench or furrow to plant a row of seeds. Plant the seeds about 6 to 8 inches apart for dense plantings or 12 to 15 inches apart for wider spacing this is ideal for branching sunflower varieties that produce multiple flowering branches, rather than those that produce a single flower on a tall, upright stalk.

Try to dig them out carefully because if there is a decent root system intact, you can move the thinned seedlings to a new spot in the garden. The third time to plant sunflowers is in winter. Yep, winter. Using a technique known as winter sowing to start your sunflowers is fun and simple.

Did you know? Sunflowers are related to Jerusalem artichokes, Helianthus tuberosus. If you plant Jerusalem artichokes and let them flower, they will bear beautiful, sunflower-like blooms. To grow sunflowers you need a sunny, sheltered spot and a good soil — add plenty of well-rotted manure or garden compost before planting, if you can.

Protect the young plants from slugs and snails and water your sunflowers regularly. Choose your variety carefully as some sunflowers will grow 50cm, while others grow over 3m. Sow seeds in pots from April and plant out when all risk of frost has passed. Prepare the soil well and add plenty of organic matter to the planting hole. Keep your sunflowers well watered and feed weekly to encourage them to grow tall.

You may need to stake some of the taller varieties. Sunflowers need sun. They do best in fertile soil in a sheltered spot, but will also do well in containers. Sow sunflower seeds from April to May, individually in 10cm pots of peat-free, multi-purpose compost. Plant out into the garden when all risk of frost has passed, from early June.

Sow sunflower seeds into individual pots of peat-free, multi-purpose compost in April. Sow one seed per 7. Push the seed 1. Cover pots with a clear plastic bag and place in a cool but bright place. Prepare soil by removing weeds and add plenty of organic matter.

Plant the sunflowers at the same depth they were in the pot. There are now more sunflowers than just the seed bearing giants that many gardeners are familiar with. Just take a look at the gardening catalogs. Sunflowers can be broadly divided into two types: those grown for production of edible seeds and those grown as ornamentals and cut flowers. Most gardeners will be interested in the ornamental sunflowers, also known as Helianthus annuus. Sunflowers come in heights ranging from less than one foot to ten feet and also come in a wide range of flower colors.

While brilliant yellow will always be popular, you can also choose from creamy white, bronze, mahogany, rusty red, burgundy and orange. Some types produce flowers with more than one color. The center disk of the sunflower also adds to the display and goes through color changes as the flower matures and seeds form.

For best bouquet results, choose cultivars that are pollen-less to prevent pollen from shedding onto a tablecloth or other flowers in an arrangement. If you want to grow sunflowers for the delicious, nutritious seeds, make sure you choose varieties bred for seed production, such as Mammoth Russian — also known as Mammoth, Russian Giant and Gray Stripe.

These tall-growing sunflowers produce a single enormous flower at the top of the plant.