Stalking Sunflowers.
A simple flower that everyone loves.
“Find the seed at the bottom of your heart and bring forth a flower.”
- Shigenori Kameoka
Hello Everyone.
Sunflowers are like sweet basil, there is never enough garden space to satisfy the demand. I always want to grow more. A garden without either sunflowers or basil, would simply not be a proper garden. Layering the tallest Mammoth Russian ( Helianthus annuus) with a mid-sized Velvet Queen and the shorter, Autumn Beauty a multi-branching variety is what a summer garden is all about.
Helianthus belongs to the Asteraceae family, one of the largest classifications which also includes calendula, lettuce, and marigold. Each is characterized by a daisy-like flower that ultimately forms seed-producing pods. Sunflowers and most of the Asteraceae family are the easiest plants to start from seed. In a pot or directly in the garden, they will flourish — that is if you don’t have any chipmunks to spoil your plan.
I grow a range of sunflowers and buy seeds from as many sources as I can find, usually about two dozen different packets. Most are started in 50 plug trays, protected in a cold frame until it is time to set out in the kitchen garden.
Yet for the past two years, a chipmunk is winning this game. Anyone who gardens knows that these tiny creatures can cause big trouble. And they have a special fondness for sunflowers, in seed form and as young plants. Each day I’d find holes under the cold frame, seeds dug out of the garden and stems of young plants neatly chewed. After weeks of trying, I was ready to give up.
Like anything in the garden, no two years will ever be the same. Luck one year does not guarantee it will be so easy the following year. Yet when it comes to sunflowers, I assumed they were foolproof. Until now. A reminder to never take anything for granted. This little chipmunk is teaching me that I can’t always rely on past success to achieve my dreams.
I suspect that your advice might be to capture it in a have-a-heart to move to a new location, and I did just that. Three times I drove him far from home. Yet within a day or two, the little scoundrel was back, eating and digging with vengeance. It was time to try a new tactic — find a way to acceptance.
Here’s what I’m growing this year:
Velvet Queen with a beguiling dark burgundy petaled blossom surrounded by a charcoal black disc. It’s always on the top of my list.
Valentine is a cut flower type on spindly stems with smaller, pale yellow blossoms. The color blends nicely with Italian White, in a vase and the garden.
Primrose Yellow offers a dramatic height, along with layers of multi-branched blossoms for cutting. Mid-sized height, it fills in that middle space.
Italian White (H. deblis) is a short, branching variety with delicate pointed petals, ringed with thin bands of buttery yellow on white. Spindly stems make them easy to arrange in a vase, unlike those with big heads that tend to droop downwards.
Autumn Beauty, has a similar stature to Italian White and makes a nice pairing. Blooms are shades of gold, tawny brown, and mahogany. Keep them picked and more blossoms will appear.
Music Box and Teddy Bear, are targeted for children, grow only 2 ½ feet, and work nicely in containers.
Henry Wilde an heirloom variety that grows to an impressive height with fifteen side shoots all producing full-sized heads. An open-pollinated variety, save the seed to grow again next year.
We win some and lose some. There will always be critters that upset our balance, yet gardening is about learning to live alongside each other. When it comes to living with the wildlife that invades our garden, sometimes it simply takes adjusting to a new strategy of kindness. Plant a little extra, or create a distraction with a special treat. That’s what I did, and it worked!
My strategy was to feed the chipmunk a little treat. Each morning at the same time, I fill up a tiny bowl with walnuts, raisins and a berry. I was inspired by this instagram site, and created a special area for his snacks.
I’m not sure feeding the chipmunk is the right answer, yet honestly, he looks pretty cute eating at the tiny picnic table. And my sunflowers are finally growing into a mass of tall stems with blossoms about to open. Once the garden is in full swing, maybe it is okay to allow wildlife to graze to their heart’s content. Because the truth is that gardening is not just about us, but for all creatures great and small.
From my Vermont garden to yours,
Ellen O.
Ellen Ecker Ogden is a cookbook author and kitchen garden designer.
p.s. Water, water everywhere. As most of you know, parts of Vermont have been devastated by flooding. While too much water is an issue for homes and gardens, it is especially hard for the farmers who are losing crops and valuable soil. Many farms are located on low ground, and may never recover.
Please follow @nofavermont to see how you can help Vermont farms. I’m proud that Vermonters are volunteering to help with this enormous relief effort.