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Plant Selector Guide
Helianthus annuus (Common Sunflower)

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Plant Type: Annual
Uses: Border, Culinary, Cutting Bed
Propagation: Seeds
Habit: Upright
Light: Full Sun
Flower Color: Various
Blooms: Spring, Summer
Width: 1 - 3 ft.
Height: 2 - 8 ft.
Fertility: Moderately Rich, Average
Soil: Neutral, Well-Drained
Zone: 1 - 11
Attracts: Birds, Squirrels

Hardy Annual. Large gold, orange, red, rust, white or pale yellow petaled flowers (some up to 2 feet across) are grown as an ornamental garden plant. Centers are filled with edible seeds which birds and squirrels love to eat, not to mention people. Large-seeded types such as 'Russian Giant' are often grown in a vegetable garden. They are fun for kids to grow in a child's garden as the seeds are big and sprout quickly. Some cultivated varieties are dwarfed or branching and have smaller flowers, sometimes with double petals. A great cut flower guaranteed to cheer up a room. For early flowering, sow seeds indoors in early spring. Where there is room for them, small-flowered sunflowers such as 'Diadem' make outstanding background plants in mixed borders. 'Fashion Parade' is the cultivar pictured.