Dwarf sunflowers make a good crop in both summer and fall here at MSU’s Truck Crops Experiment Station. There is one variety that may have you seeing stars, it’s called Constellation.
Sunflowers, particularly dwarf types like Constellation, look good when they’re massed in single colors to the middle or back of the border.
Mississippi State University is using them in display gardens with Belgian mums that have hundreds of buds which will soon be in riotous bloom. We’ve also combined the sunflowers with great new coleus selections like Mocha Mint and Indian Summer.
Constellation is a fast-growing variety that produces flowers in 45 to 55 days. They are as great in containers as they are in the landscape. Plants grow to about 24 inches tall in a container or 36 inches tall in the garden.
Constellation’s flowers are 6 inches wide with dark centers. Once the first flower has opened, many more buds will follow, and they’ll bloom for a longer season than you might expect.
Sunflowers prefer a loose, fertile, well-drained garden soil, and of course plenty of sunlight.
Feed every 6 to 8 weeks with a light application of a 1-2-1 ratio fertilizer like 5-10-5.
Dwarf sunflower varieties you’ll want to try in addition to Constellation, are Ballad, Sundance Kid, Teddy Bear and Big Smile.
These dwarf sunflower plants, with their huge, colorful flowers, should encourage you to find a home for them in your flower garden. I’m Norman Winter for Southern Gardening.