Picture a common sunflower in your mind, what do you see? Many people may describe sunflowers as tall, yellow and bright, but this classic sunflower simply doesn’t do the plant justice. Sunflowers are dynamic because they grow in various shapes, sizes, and colors.
The sunflower is native to North America and is now harvested all over the world. Our vendor farms start prepping their fields in late spring, so they bloom during the summer and die back at the first frost of fall. The best process is to plant their sunflowers every few weeks to extend bloom time.
When it comes to color, not all sunflowers are yellow. The outer petal-bearing florets can be many colors like yellow, red, orange and purple. This variety of colors can be perfect for an everyday bouquet or a centerpiece on your dinning table.
How fast do sunflowers grow? Well they grow quickly. Many can grow up to 12 feet in only 3 months. With proper growing conditions, sunflowers reach maturity in about 70 to 100 days after planting. It was confirmed back in 2014 by the The Guinness World Records, that Hans-Peter Schiffer in Harst, Germany who was responsible for growing the tallest sunflower, that reached 30 feet tall. That’s pretty impressive!
A fun sunflower fact is young sunflowers track the sun, also referred to as heliotropism. In a study by ScienceMag, scientists reveal sunflowers have circadian rhythms, which promote this behavior. A young sunflower’s face follows the sun from sunrise to sunset every day and repeats the cycle until maturity.
So it just goes to show that sunflowers can go beyond being yellow and tall. Whether it’s record-breaking heights, creating a bountiful array of colors, or circadian rhythms, sunflowers are dynamic plants.
So let me ask you again when you imagine a sunflower, what do you see? Now that you’ve pictured your perfect sunflower it might be time to add them to your home.
