How to Extend Your Sunflower Growing Season

Planting sunflowers I found out this year, isn't a onetime deal. If you want, you can have a seemingly unending supply of sunflowers and seeds by properly planning your growing season. Using some of the tips I found you can essentially extend your sunflower growing season and take full advantage of these amazing plants.

Length of the Growing Season

Understanding how long it takes for sunflowers to mature will help extend your sunflower growing season. Most varieties reach full growth within 75 to 100 days of planting. Sunflower growing season can stretch as long as the weather is warm and the sun is high. Sunflowers of any variety can be planted after the passing of winter's last frost and can continue to be planted from 75 up to 110 days before the first frost of the next winter. How does this extend your sunflower growing season? By using proper planning, you can plant a new set of seeds each week of the growing season. This will allow you to have sunflowers to enjoy within 75 days of planting up to the end of the season. If you use perennials, you can have sunflower plants sprouting at the first sign of warm weather, which may extend your sunflower growing season another week. If you start your plants indoors, around the middle of March, you can have sunflower plants ready to go into the ground as soon as the ground warms up; that will speed things up further.

Perennial vs. Annual

The most common sunflower planted is the annual variety; which means the seeds must be planted each year. While this allows plants to flower the same year you plant them, a good way to extend your sunflower growing season is to use a mix of annual and perennial varieties. Perennial plants won't bloom the first year, but they will continue to self-germinate for years after; this means you will not have to plant new seeds as the plants will come up on their own. Mixing both types will provide a nice show all season long, which could mean up to seven months of sunflowers.

Planting Space

Planting your sunflowers should be done according to the recommended spacing of at least 12 inches apart, but can be spread out up to 18 inches. While this will regulate how many plants you have in a given area, remember that some varieties have large blossoms while others have multiple smaller blooms which will cover the open space.

If you start your plants indoors, use a 4 inch by 2 inch container. This allows you to plant 12 seeds. If you water and care for them properly, you will have 12 starter plants to work with. Once your plants reach two inches in height, they are ready to transplant. When your first batch is moved to permanent space, immediately start a second set in the starter container. This can also extend your sunflower growing season and allow a more controlled growth.