The sunflower is a blooming highlight in many front gardens. As with many other plants, there are several varieties here. This brief overview shows what these are.
Admittedly, sunflowers are concise. Even small children recognize the plants by their large blossoms, in the middle of which there is a mighty circle of seeds. But although the plant, which belongs to the aster family, is so well known for its flowers, many plant lovers are amazed that there are actually different species.
In this article we will introduce some of the sunflower species.
Facts about the sunflower
Scientifically, the sunflower is one of the daisy family and originally comes from North America. In professional circles it is referred to as Helianthus and occurs in 67 individual species. In Central Europe you will mostly come across two natural types of sunflower, although thanks to nurseries and potted plants it is much easier to grow the sunflowers that are not cultivated here.
Depending on the species, the sunflower is perennial and can reach a height of up to five metres. The flowers are formed only at the top of the stem, with the stem often branching here.
The two sunflowers native to Central Europe are the Helianthus annus, called sunflower for short, and the Helianthus tuberusus, which is rarely associated with sunflowers and is known as Jerusalem artichoke.
The small types of sunflower
Although the sunflower is commonly used in gardens, among the many species and modern breeds there are sunflowers that are suitable as a pot or container plant. The dwarf sunflowers include:
» Teddy Bear
The multi-stemmed dwarf sunflower teddy bear (can be found here, for example) reaches a maximum height of 40 centimeters and has a flower that is completely filled with yellow. The flowers can reach a diameter of up to six inches.
» Sunny Smile
Sunflower variety also has multiple stems and grows up to forty centimeters high. The flower reaches a diameter of up to fifteen centimeters, but has a dark coloreye.
» Sunspot
With a height of only forty centimetres, the Sunspot sunflower (can be found here, for example) is suitable as a pot and tub plant. The flowers grow up to thirty centimeters in size and are golden yellow in colour.
» Double Dandy
With a growth height of 60 centimetres, the Double Candy sunflower (can be found here, for example) is already significantly larger. It has yellow flowers and double flowers.
» Garden Statement
The fully grown Garden Statement (available e.g. here) reaches a height of 80 centimeters and makes large and showy flowers with a dark inner circle.
» Italian White
This sunflower is more suitable as a container plant and reaches a height of up to 120 centimetres. It is multiflowering, but sprouts rather small flowers that stand out with a dark blue inner circle bordered by cream-colored leaves.
An overview of the large species
The following sunflowers are also annuals, but are only partially suitable as a container plant:
» Pro Cut Biocolor
With a growth height of 150 centimetres, you can still plant the Pro Cut Bicolor (e.g. here) in a large pot. The plant grows in a single stem and forms yellow-orange flowers with a diameter of about 15 centimetres.
» Helianthus debilis
This species also grows up to 150 centimeters high, but belongs to the multi-stemmed genera. The flowers are relatively small at eight centimeters, but they are ideal for drying.
» Terracotta
This sunflower grows up to 1.80 meters. It has several stalks and forms flowers with a diameter of about 15 centimeters. The flower color is a dark orange.
» evening sun
A growth height of two meters is not uncommon with this multi-stemmed evening sun (there is e.g. here). It got its name because of its red-orange flowers, which are reminiscent of a sunset. It is excellent for the garden as the flowering period covers a long period.
» King Kong
Put the Sunflower King Kong (e.g. here) in the garden and you have a real eye-catcher. The plant grows up to four and a half meters high and has multiple stems. The flowers can reach a diameter of forty centimeters.
If you opt for a multi-stemmed variety of sunflower for your garden, you should regularly cut off the withered blossoms. This allows the plant to produce new and more flowers.