It’s easy to grow your own flowers from seed. Here’s beautiful flowers, growing information & seed collections for gifts.
COUNTRY GARDEN SEED SHOP
Helianthus F1 'Munchkin'
Munchkin Sunflowers are lovely dwarf Sunflowers. Growing up to 60 cm tall (2 feet) they are excellent in containers and in garden borders too. Each plant is well branched and produces lots of vibrant yellow flowers with a green central disk. They are easy to grow, good for cut flowers and great for children to grow too.
Munchkin is the first pollen-free Sunflower for container planting. The main advantage of pollen-free Sunflowers is a longer vase life and no pollen indoors. Sow Munchkin Sunflowers in succession for flowers from June to September. For your cut flower patch sow indoors March-April then plant out in May. Sow again when the soil has warmed up outdoors (from May onwards) for a later crop.
If you are serious about cut flower production sow a batch of Sunflower seeds every two weeks. You'll need plenty! Munchkin Sunflowers are lovely for mixed posies and sell well at Farmers Markets. What's more they have the RHS AGM. (Award of Garden Merit)
| Genus | Helianthus annuus |
| Variety | Munchkin |
| Plant Type | Half Hardy Annual. F1 Seeds. No Pollen. Cut Flower |
| Height & Spread | 60cm tall x 30cm wide (2 feet tall x 1 foot wide) |
| Sow Seeds | Sow seeds indoors into 10-15cm pots (4-6inches) at 10-16°C March-April then plant out in late April and May. Sow outdoors in spring (May) for a later crop of summer flowers. Sow every two weeks for cut flower production. |
| Thin/Plant Out | Allow 30cm (12 inches) between plants. |
| Conditions Required | Sunflowers prefer moist but well drained soil in full sun. Water thoroughly in dry spells. Water and feed containers regularly. |
| Flower Production | Many stems with vibrant yellow flowers produced from June to September. Each flower head is 8-10cm /3-4 inches across making them perfect for hand tied bouquets and posies. Munchkin usually takes 9-10 weeks from seed to flower. |
| Picking | For cut flowers pick Sunflowers when the first few petals have unfurled. It's best to pick when it's cool, early in the morning or evening, strip most of the leaves from the stem and stand them in deep water for a few hours. Sunflowers have a long vase life, no preservative necessary. |
| Planting Combinations | Sunflowers are some of the most stunning annual flowers you can grow and Munchkin is popular because of outstanding performance in the garden and containers. These flowers will amaze you with their beauty, speed of growth and long vase life. |