Companion FlowersAsteraceae
Sunflowers.
Pollinator magnetDeer favorite
At a glance
The spec sheet.
- Direct sow / out
- May 15 – Jun 15 (successions)
- Germ
- 5–10 days
- Days to harvest
- 70–100 to bloom
- Spacing
- 12–18"
- Depth
- 1"
- Square-foot
- 1 per square (branching), 4 per square (single-stem)
- Qty target
- One 10-ft row = a summer of bouquets + bird food.
Plant
Direct sow. Choose pollen-less varieties (ProCut, Sunrich) for cut flowers — no yellow dust on the table.
Care
No fertilizer needed. Stake tall types (6ft+). Chickadees and goldfinches strip seed heads in fall.
Harvest
Cut when back of head just starts to yellow, before petals fully open. Vase life 5–7 days.
Seeds roasted for snacking. Save heads on the plant for goldfinches; save some for next year's seed.
Companion planting
What sunflowers likes, and doesn’t.
Good neighbors
- Corn (Three Sisters variation)
- Cucumber (natural trellis)
- Squash
- Potatoes (sunflowers compete for water/nitrogen)
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