The large, cheerful heads of sunflowers
are associated with goodwill, friendship, and happiness. Beautiful
in small groupings in a garden, planted over large plots of land,
or growing wild, these flowers native to the Americas give every
person who sees them a reason to smile.
Sunflowers, as their name implies,
require full sun to grow. They prefer soil that drains well and
plenty of mulch. As some varieties of sunflowers can grow up to
12 feet tall, plant sunflowers away from windows, in the rear of
garden beds, and wide open spaces. When preparing to place sunflowers
in relation to other garden flowers, be wary of competition in the
garden, as sunflowers may leave smaller plants in the shade. Dwarf
sunflowers may b preferred by growers who do not have the space
for the taller varieties.
Sunflower seeds (in actuality, the
fruit of the plant), can be eaten, but if you've planted your sunflowers
as a part of a kitchen garden, watch out! Birds and animals love
sunflowers' tasty seeds as well and may get to them before you do.
Either cover the sunflower head with cheesecloth while you wait
for the seeds to ripen, or cut the sunflower heads and hang in a
cool, dark place until dry (place a pan underneath the flower to
catch falling seeds or place a paper bag with holes over the flower
head and secure with twine).
Sunflower seeds have the added benefit
of being quite rich in Omega 6 fatty acids. As a matter of fact,
sunflower seeds have more Omega-6s than other seeds like flax /
linseeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and pine nuts. So eat up!
