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FlowersHalf-HardyAnnual
Sunflower
Sunflower is a fast-growing annual grown for large bright flower heads, useful wildlife value and strong summer height. It is one of the easiest statement plants from seed, with forms ranging from giant singles to branching cut-flower varieties.
Basic information
Category
Flowers
Lifecycle
Annual
Hardiness
Half-Hardy
Planting partners
0 companions · 0 crops to avoid
Growth profile
Germination window
7–14 days
Germination temperature
18–24 °C
Plant spacing
45 cm
Row spacing
60 cm
Sowing depth
2 cm
Height
240 cm
Spread
45 cm
Calendar
JJan
FFeb
MMar
AApr
MMay
JJun
JJul
AAug
SSep
OOct
NNov
DDec
Sow Indoors
Sow Outdoors
Plant Out
Flowering / Harvest
Timings based on average frost dates in the UK. Sign up to set your frost dates.
Care tips
Sow sunflowers with warmth or direct sow once the soil has warmed, and protect seedlings from slugs and birds while stems are still soft. Give full sun, support taller varieties before wind catches them, and keep water steady while the plants race upward and set buds.
Common pests
Slugs on seedlings, aphids, birds on seedheads, mildew in stress.
Companions
No companion crops have been added yet.
Don’t grow with
No crops to avoid have been added yet.