New Sunflower Cultivars Can Bring Summer Fun To Bouquets

With the dreary week we have had this week, I thought it would be fun to send this article from Rosie Lerner, Purdue Extension horticulture specialist, on sunflowers to brighten up our thoughts.

Sunflowers have long been included in the typical Midwestern garden, but modern hybrids have greatly expanded the palette of choices for today’s garden. Whether you want short, medium or tall; yellow, burgundy, bronze or brown; seed for the birds; or just pretty look at, there’s a sunflower for you.

Gardeners will find two different types of sunflowers available from garden centers and mail-order catalogs: those that are grown for their edible seeds, and those that are grown primarily as ornamentals.

Traditional varieties were generally quite tall (5-plus feet) with bright yellow blooms. Modern cultivars now offer a range of orange, gold, lemon-yellow, bronze, amber, mahogany-red and even white.

To read the rest of the story, please go to: Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service