Add cheer to your garden by growing low-maintenance sunflowers. After the flower petals fade, sunflower seeds feed hungry birds.
Easy to grow and useful all year-round, sunflowers are crowd-pleasers. Summer’s bright blooms bring joy to gardeners and pollinators, and naturally dried seeds provide local wildlife with a food source in winter. They thrive in most soil types and climates, as long as they’re in a sunny spot. Follow these proven tips for growing sunflowers.
Enjoy stunning sunflower pictures that radiate beauty.
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Growing Sunflowers From Seed
A symbol of summer, common sunflower always draws major attention wherever it’s planted. Sunflowers come in a range of colors and sizes. After the last frost of the season, choose a sunny spot and sow sunflower seeds into the soil about every 6 inches.
Sunflowers are truly one of the easiest plants for growing from seed, but they do have a few requirements. They need at least six hours of sunlight per day and well-drained soil. They benefit from organic matter. Keep the area under sunflowers mulched for better results.
- Common name: Sunflower
- Scientific name: Helianthus annuus
- Zones: Annual
- Attracts: Birds, bees, butterflies
- Light needs: Full sun
- Size: Standard varieties grow up to 10 feet tall
- Grown for: Large, iconic seed heads that are perfect landing pads for pollinators and birds.
- Foliage: Stalks fade to brown in the winter
- Cultivars to try: Go big with Mammoth sunflowers that can grow to 9 feet or taller with 11-inch flowers, or stay on the smaller side with Sunny Bunch, which top out at just 3 feet.
Grow Mexican sunflower in pollinator gardens.
The Best Sunflower Varieties for Birds
Sunflower seeds provide major nutrition to hungry birds in scarce seasons. Instead of removing dried seed heads, leave them up for the birds in fall and winter.
You can find many sunflower varieties on the market today, but not all of them are suitable food sources for birds. If you’re planning on growing sunflowers, make sure they produce a good supply of seeds. Super Snack Mix, Royal Hybrid, and Mammoth Russian all produce seeds in abundance.
Learn how to grow false sunflower plants.
When to Plant Sunflower Seeds
Sunflowers have the best seed buffet in late summer to early fall. For longer harvest time, stagger your planting time from spring to midsummer. This way, you can attract birds and enjoy the blooms for months.
In late summer, gather your sunflower heads and put them in a dry place to dehydrate (or simply stop pruning). You can then hang them out by your feeders. This will create a supply of high-fat seeds for birds that last well into winter.
Do hummingbirds like sunflowers?
Birds That Eat Sunflower Seeds
- Northern cardinal
- Chickadees
- Finches
- Tufted titmouse
- Grosbeaks
- Nuthatches
- Woodpeckers
- Pine siskin
- Jays
- Sparrows
Did you know—tomatoes make great sunflower companion plants.
