Tallest sunflower and largest head challenge 2017

That's the one Scrungee ! He live in Shevington just up the road from us .

 

4 Days layer and about 50% were showing through this morning. Rather than keep in a heated greenhouse, I'll move them to a polytunnel tommorow and protect against frost so they'll grow slower and sturdier. I've got some tall conical glass cloches to put over them when they get planted out (and to put over seeds sown direct).

 

One of my new Sunflower structures designed 2017 GROWING THREAD My other structure might be a combined giant Maize/giant Sunflower arrangement utilising the reduced to clear 8' fence posts I bought from B&Q. If they have something to compete with then they might grow taller.

Glad I brought 16 pot grown Sunflowers back from my plot before the freezing weather arrived. I didn't know how they'd stand up to it and half of them are from irreplaceable seeds. The ones left covered up in a polytunnel survived the cold OK, but I stupidly removed them from mouse proof staging and put them in one of the lower crates that were covered with curtains. By the morning mice had eaten the tops off most of them.

The ones I brought back home have been put into deep rose pots [1] full of JI/MPC mix (IMO Sunflowers grow better in soil than in peaty stuff), still rather small to be potted on but at least the mice wont be able to climb up the sides of them. The sunflowers will now be able to make lots of deep roots without becoming pot bound, and they're deep enough to take support canes.

Sorted out my tall cloches ready to cover them (and seeds sown direct), short ones 400mm x 225mm, taller ones 600mm x 225mm. Need to scrub them up a bit.




[1] I'm now using these for pot sown Giant Sunflowers, Runner Beans and Maize, with seeds initially started in fibre pots in heated propagators, then potted up into the deep pots.

 

I've always do it that way but in stong winds they can pull over the runner beans sticks

 

Mine will be OK as I apparently have rocket thrusters at the base will prevent any overturning by wind (AKA concrete pad foundations).

 

My pot sown seeds are now this size and in rose pots to allow deep roots

 

5 inch tall today

 

My tallest is 5.25 inches high

 

.. 2 inch

 

I still haven't even planted mine yet I am well behind this year

 

Ready for planting out, got about 6 others and will select the healthiest plants.

 

Now that's just showing off , mine have only just come up

 

First Sunflower in bloom, or is it.:rasp:

 

And there's more.