How to Care for Sunflowers

Known for their eye-catching and joyful blooms, sunflowers are one of the best-loved flowers that are sure to bring a smile. They come in a wide range of sizes, from dwarf to giant, to suit different types of gardens. While sunflowers are often associated with golden yellow, they do come in a variety of other colors such as red, orange, and even white. 

Planting sunflowers is a simple and fun way to get the kids involved in the garden, and with the right care, you’ll achieve vibrant and magnificent blooms that are sure to get people talking. Here, we cover how to care for sunflowers, both in your garden and indoors, to ensure they grow healthy and blooming.

Types of sunflowers

While towering, golden-yellow sunflowers are the most recognizable, there are several types of sunflowers for you to pick from. 

Here are just some of the varieties of sunflowers that you can grow: 

• Skyscraper sunflowers: Categorized as tall sunflowers, skyscraper sunflowers can grow up to 14 feet tall. They have thick stalks and produce 14-inch flower petals. 
• Sunforest mixed sunflowers: If you’re looking to grow a forest of large sunflowers, sunforest mixed sunflowers are a perfect choice. They can grow between 10 to 15 feet tall with large blooms. 
• American Giant sunflowers: A popular choice for sunflower growing competitions, American Giants can grow up to 15 feet tall! They’re known for their thick, sturdy stems to support the sunflower’s large head.
• Russian Mammoth sunflowers: Popular with pollinators like bees and butterflies, Russian Mammoth sunflowers can grow up to 12 feet tall. Animals like birds and squirrels also like to eat their seeds. 
• Little Becka sunflowers: A dwarf variety of sunflower, Little Beckas only grow to up to 2 feet tall. They have an orange “halo” effect to their petals and are perfect for growing in small garden planters or boxes.
• Moulin Rouge sunflowers: More unique in color, Moulin Rouge sunflowers have burgundy red petals and grow to about 4 feet tall.

How to care for sunflowers

Growing magnificent sunflowers is a big achievement, so it makes sense to care for them properly to keep them thriving. Here are our top tips on how to care for your sunflowers, depending on their location.

Caring for sunflowers in a vase

Having sunflowers in a vase is a great way to bring some joy and color to your home. By growing beautiful sunflowers in your garden you’ll have access to vibrant blooms you can then fill your home with. Or perhaps you’ve received a beautiful bouquet as a gift from a loved one that you want to keep looking its best for as long as possible. 

Here are our tips on how to care for cut sunflowers in a vase:

• If you’re cutting sunflowers from your garden to place in a vase, try to plan a day ahead if you can. If the ground is dry, water your sunflowers the day before you cut them to make sure they’re well hydrated.
• Keep your cut sunflowers fresh by recutting their stems and putting them in fresh holding solution (a floral preservative) every two days. Cut the stems under water to prevent air bubbles from entering the stem’s vascular system. While you empty the vase, keep the stems in water and clean the vase well.
• While sunflowers are known to love the sun, it’s important to keep your sunflowers out of direct sunlight and away from drafts which can dehydrate them and cause them to wilt.

If you’ve ordered a stunning sunflower bouquet from us here at French Florist, your blooms will arrive in a beautiful vase that complements the arrangement. To keep your arrangement looking vibrant, try to change the vase water every two days.

Caring for sunflowers in a pot

Sunflowers can grow happily in pots as long as the container you’ve chosen is the right size for the plant - so make sure to check the height information on your seed packet.

Here’s how to care for sunflowers in a pot:

• Chance of frost overnight? You’ll need to give your sunflower pots some protection to ensure the seeds germinate well. Place them on a sunny windowsill or in a greenhouse to protect them from the frost, then move them back outdoors once the frost has gone.
• Keep an eye on your potted sunflowers - they will dry out more quickly than those grown in the garden. Provide an inch of water per week, and water them when the top inch of soil feels dry to touch. 
• To fertilize your potted sunflowers, use a high-nitrogen liquid plant fertilizer and once the flowers start to bloom switch to a liquid fertilizer high in phosphorus.

Caring for giant sunflowers

While caring for giant sunflowers may leave you feeling nervous (after all, you’ve spent time growing them to great heights and won’t want to damage them!), it should be straightforward. 

Here’s how to care for giant sunflowers:

• Protect your giant sunflowers from the wind - the taller the sunflower, the more vulnerable it is to wind breakage and snapping. If you can, grow your sunflowers next to a tall fence or wall away from direct wind.
• Sunflowers need plenty of water to avoid them drying out. Water them with 1 inch of water per week depending on rainfall.
• Pests are the number one killer of sunflowers. To avoid pests attacking your sunflowers, place covers over germinating sunflower seeds and keep them protected until they’re at least several inches tall. 

Caring for dwarf sunflowers

While dwarf sunflowers are smaller than their taller relatives, they’re just as beautiful and grow easily in containers. 

Here’s how to care for dwarf sunflowers:

• Like larger types of sunflowers, dwarf sunflowers thrive in full sun and need at least six hours of direct sunlight per day. 
• Water your dwarf sunflowers deeply once a week, but if your plants start to look droopy this is a sign you may be overwatering them. They also need good drainage, so if they still look droopy after you’ve cut back on watering you may need to re-pot them.
• Dwarf sunflowers don’t require lots of fertilizer, as long as their soil is rich in nutrients. But it’s important to feed them at least once during the growing season with an all-purpose fertilizer. Feeding them monthly will help them grow to their maximum levels and keep them thriving. Make sure to follow the directions on the packaging so you don’t burn your sunflowers with too much fertilizer.

Best tips to care for sunflowers

Looking for general top tips to keep your sunflowers in the best shape? Here are some of our best tips to care for your sunflowers:

• While growing, support your tall sunflowers with stakes to avoid wind damage.
• Once your sunflowers start to bloom, feed them weekly with a high potassium feed such as tomato feed.
• Water your sunflowers regularly during dry periods, especially taller varieties as trying to recover them once they’ve dried out is difficult.
• Once your sunflowers have finished flowering, leave the flower head intact for the birds to feast on the seeds  - finches and sparrows will love them! 
• In late fall, pull up the plants and compost them.

Buy beautiful sunflowers online with French Florist for same-day local delivery.

Lover of sunflowers but not much of a gardener? This doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy vibrant sunflowers in your home.

If you’re looking for remarkable sunflowers from a local florist - look no further. Here at French Florist, we pride ourselves on our passion and love for flower arranging to give you the best experience time and time again. We work directly with our farms and maintain a close relationship with them, saying no to any distributors or wholesalers. That way, we know exactly the quality of flowers you will receive so you’re wowed by your bouquet every time. We don’t settle for anything less.

If you want the very best sunflowers delivered to your door, you can order your arrangement from French Florist for delivery nationwide, and same-day local delivery. Order sunflowers online today to bring a smile to a loved one, or as a gift to yourself.