Following last year’s very competitive sunflower competition, BHAS is again offering its members free sunflower seeds at the trading shed for spring planting. Pick up a pack of seeds (one pack per BHAS plotholder) at the trading shed and start to prepare your garden for some bee-friendly competition!

The variety available this year is Giant Sunflower Titan.

The seeds will be at the trading shed starting Saturday, 20 March while supplies last.

How to enter

Sunflowers will form two new categories in the Annual Show in September and your sunflower can be entered into the show along with the other categories; if the show is not able to go forward, we will arrange an online entry form like we did last year – so the sunflower competition will go forward!

Pick up a packet of seeds or use your own; plant them when you’re ready.

Growing instructions

Giant Sunflower Titan.

One of the tallest-growing and easily the biggest-headed and seeded variety available to gardeners.   Perfect for impressing your neighbors and winning competitions.  The plants will need support reaching up to 12ft with large yellow flower heads plants can reaching 18-24″ across! The seeds are large and ideal for consumption or leaving for over-winter birds.  Annual.

Cultiviation Advice Giant Sunflower Titan

  • Days To Germination:  14-21 days Optimum Soil Temp. for Germination: 68F-86F Planting Depth: 1/4  inch  Spacing, Seed: 4-6 inch  Spacing, Plant: 24-36 inches Plant Height: 10-14 ft inches Light:  Full Sun
  • Seeds can be started indoors 3 to 4 weeks before last spring frost. Or direct-sow seeds outside after all danger of frost has passed to a depth of 1/4 inch. Can be sown as late as 100 days before last frost.
  • When seedlings are 2 to 3 inches high, thin to individual pots. Replant thinned plants.
  • Steadily harden off before planting out after all danger of frost has passed.
  • These will require staking / support in all but the most sheltered locations.

Source: Premier Seeds Direct

Competition rules

Categories & guidance on how to measure

1. Biggest sunflower head

Measure the diameter of the seed head. The flower petals should not be included. Heads should be cut from the stock (unless also entering the same plant into the tallest sunflower category).

2. Tallest sunflower plant

Measured from the base of the stem (not including the roots) to the top of the head. The head can be extended to measure the full height of the plant. We ask that gardeners cut off the roots to make it easier to measure the stem. Please also remove leaves from the stalk.

Photos of your sunflower journey

Please do send us any photos you have of your sunflowers (from seed to competition-winning size!) as we would like to share the journey on social media or on the website. Photos can be sent to bhas.social.news@gmail.com.

Thank you and good luck!