Admit it, sunflowers are the best part of summer gardens! Their bright blossoms cheer everything up no matter how dull the day is.
But there’s a long road from a tiny sunflower seedling to a spectacular blooming plant. And if you mess up even one thing, you won’t see it happening.
I’m talking about repotting the seedlings – when to repot, to be more precise. The last thing you want is for your sunflowers to topple over. Yes, they do have pretty big heads, which makes things a bit complicated.
Repotting the seedlings to a correctly-sized container is the best way to prevent it. And so, we’re back to the right timing for repotting.
Get this, the name sunflower is a hint in itself. These are sun-loving species, so you’ll need to wait until the weather warms up.
And this brings us to the other question:
When Exactly Should You Repot Sunflower Seedlings?
If you ask an experienced gardener to recommend some fast-growing veggies, sunflower sprouts will be on the list for sure. Believe it or not, my indoor sunflowers sprouted 12 days after the planting.
And things go even faster from then. You don’t really have a lot of time to determine the perfect time for repotting. The weather will warm up soon, assuming you planted your sunflowers about 6 weeks before the last expected frost.
What are we looking at exactly? The size of your seedlings! It’s the best indicator of a sunflower that’s ready for repotting.
Once the first true set of leaves forms, you can proceed with repotting! Your sunflowers will most likely be around 2 inches tall at this point, which is perfect.
If you’re confused with the true leaves part, let me break it down for you. The first to emerge are the seed leaves, but we don’t refer to them as true leaves. The ones that come after them are the first true ones. Thank you botany, you keep things interesting (and confusing).
These true leaves tell us that our seedlings have already developed an established root system.
And This Is The Best Way To Do It
And now, the first crucial step: choosing the ideal pot! You know those colorful shallow pots that would improve your garden design? Yeah, don’t buy them.
You should look for a deep pot, approximately 6 to 8 inches. The root system of sunflowers is pretty deep and shallow planting will encourage toppling over.
ALWAYS use pots with drainage holes! Ok, Jennifer, there’s no need to yell. Look, the easiest way to destroy a sunflower plant is to overwater it, and drainage holes will prevent this.
The second crucial step: choosing the ideal growing medium! You want your sunflowers to be healthy and happy and the only way to achieve this is by giving them enough nutrients.
Good old peat-free compost is the best solution and will encourage your sunflower seedlings to grow. Plus, it will prevent overwatering, so it’s a win-win situation!
Wait! We’re Not Done Yet!
If you thought you could repot your sunflowers only once and get amazing results, you were wrong.
You should repot again once your seedlings reach about 11 inches. Now you have two options. The first one is to repot into a bigger pot and the second one is to transplant them directly into the ground.
In most cases, sunflowers reach this size in May (if you started them on time). Temperatures are warm enough during this month.
If your sunflowers reached this size earlier than May, do not repot/transplant them yet! You don’t want to risk cold damage, which can result in lack of blooms and other, more serious issues.
I’m obsessed with sunflower blossoms and I repot them every month during the season. My goal is to get the most out of them. Of course, you don’t have to follow this, but make sure you do it at least twice if you want the best results.
Pots don’t have to be a lot bigger than the current ones. Sunflowers aren’t really fussy and will adapt easily to new conditions and won’t need a lot of space.
Nutrients are more important here, so make sure you use high-quality potting mix.
Our journey ends here! Ready to get some stunning massive sunflower blossoms? Remember, your sunflowers’ success starts with the right repotting time!