Tips on how to grow Sunflowers from seed to harvest

Sunflower plant originated from North America. The scientific name of sunflower is Helianthus annuus. This plant bloom from mid-summer to early fall, and also their flower heads are heliotropic, which simply means they follow the sun across the sky. Immediately the sunflower plant's stem becomes stiffens and also woody (around the time of its bloom), the flower will stop following the sun. Sunflower plant can grow to about ten feet, there are some Sunflower plant that can grew up to fourty feet. If you plant the sunflower seed just expect it to be full-grown and blooming within about three months. One thing about sunflower plants is that they attract butterflies, wild birds and beneficial insects to the balcony garden.

Basic requirement for Sunflower plants

1. The Light requirement: The mammoth sunflowers varieties actually need full sun for six to eight hours each day.
2. The water requirement: If you want to water the sunflower plant, make sure you add 1 inch of water per week. You can compensate if the potting soil dries out from heat or sun.
3. The fertilizer requirement: Try as much as possible to fertilize the mammoth sunflowers regularly with a high-nitrogen liquid plant fertilizer. If the flower head begins to form, you can actually switch to a liquid fertilizer with more phosphorous to promote a more spectacular sunflower bloom.

 The temperature requirement: Without been told the mammoth sunflower variety is an annual plant, which means you don’t need to worry about overwintering this plant indoors. One of things you need to remember about sunflowers and temperature, is not to plant them outdoors until the last frost has passed. By peradventure if you experience a very hot, dry day, make sure you give the sunflower plant extra water so it does not dry out too much and die.
 Disease and pest control in sunflower: This particular plant are generally very healthy and immune to common garden pests and diseases, although you will actually find wild birds and squirrels snacking on the plant seeds. if you actaully harvest the giant sunflower heads, try and keep them in an area where animals cannot eat the seeds. Although you can leave the heads on the stalk to attract birds to your garden.
 The propagation of sunflower plant: You can collect the seeds after allowing the sunflower to completely dry out. You can cut the sunflower head off and hang it upside down until the seeds has dry out. You can eat the sunflower seeds yourself or feed them to wild birds or even save them for the next gardening season. You can plant sunflower seeds one inch deep into the potting soil, and they will germinate within five to ten days.