We decided to grow a new variety of sunflower this year in our place after having so much fun with the Evening Sun sunflowers last summer. We chose ‘Mammoth’ because I imagine it will be a huge bloom, well not as huge as the mammoth during ice age of course but I got suck in when I heard the bloom can be a diameter of 30~40cm across. I also daydream of it seeds that look so edible and yummy to eat. I think it is edible with the size of it. Teringin nak makan kuaci organik sendiri.
Mammoth sunflower just popped out from the soil with its seed coat still attached. This is always a happy moment for any gardener I reckon.
Even though we have two variety growing at the same time, the Mammoth sunflower and Evening Sun sunflower seedlings can be differentiate at this stage. Tips> Mammoth~ bigger. LOL. The shade colour and shape is also slightly different. 
Sunflower seedlings growing with Early Gem sweet corn in spring.
Mammoth sunflower just about to bloom.
Facing the sky and the morning sun. It does not like the afternoon sun here which is unbearably hot even for this sun loving flower.
Full bloom. Honestly, I was a bit dissapointed that it did not reached my expectation size which is 30~40 diameter across for the bloom size 
Mammoth sunflower does have a cheery sunshine colour. It makes me smile when I look up at it 
Alamak
I am already eyeing the seeds
Head dropping too heavy I reckon
I think the mammoth sunflower does not grow well in our summer here. I am planning to try growing it at the end of summer which will be End of March or Early April just to see how big this plant can actually grow.
Any suggestion on what fun variety of sunflower to grow next?
This weekend I am planning to collect seeds from the evening sun sunflower if its not drizzling
Visit Rosie for MALAYSIAN GARDEN BLOGGERS’ CORNER.
Visit Ewa for Flower on Saturday.
Good to see the plants towering high beyond the fence, showing the large and beautiful flower head... I will wait for rain to subside first before getting serious with sunflowers.
ReplyDeleteI usually wake up at 6:00am for the date with Cerok Tokun. The sky is still dark but she will be awaken very soon, so no torchlight is required.
ReplyDeleteWill anybody laugh at you if you wake up at 6:00am for the gardening jobs?
But then the sunflowers will not be ready to greet so early.
What a shame about your sweet corn. Too hot isn't a problem we have here. If you leave the sunflower heads in place the birds and mice will enjoy the seeds too.
ReplyDeleteWow, those are some big sunflowers! I am sure you will get the 30~40 next time.
ReplyDeleteAlso, loved the little faces.
Sunflowers are always such a cheery plant to grow. I missed not having very many around last year and will have to make sure to plant a few this next season. So sorry about your corn.
ReplyDeleteOh MY goodness! what a great flowers. My youngest loves sunflowers. Can not wait to share these with her!
ReplyDeleteI have admired sunflowers in my neighbor's gardens and at the summer farmer's market, but have not grown them myself, so I can not recommend another variety to you. I just love the happy look of sunflowers- its like they are smiling their hearts out. Your picture of the sunflower in full bloom is gorgeous! Enjoy the weekend.
ReplyDeleteIt really makes me smile and in awe at the size of your sunflower! Soon you will be opening your own kilang kuaci :) but dont forget us here, I love sunflower kuaci too!
ReplyDeleteI have a different variety. It has multiple flower heads. The ones on fertile ground can be quite huge though they are not very tall. So far, I haven't seen any seeds yet. Wonder how long I need to wait. Some of the older ones are already being chewed away and I still haven't seen any seeds.
ReplyDeleteI only know sunflower as sunflower and not any variety until you recommended me Evening Sun and now Mammoth. The Mammoth head is big, sure it will produce a lot of delicious seeds!
ReplyDeleteYour sunflower is really beautiful! And very big too! Organic kuaci sounds great! I have just sowed some seeds that you sent. Hopefully it will germinate. Thanks again!
ReplyDeleteBangchik ~ You will have many things to sow after the monsoon season is over at your side of the coast.
ReplyDeleteRainfield61~ The sunflower will continue blooming until its old. At night I have to use the torchlight to see it whenever I came back from school very late which is often these days:).
Sue ~ We pampered the birds with so much sunflower seeds last summer when we were harvesting them. We also gave some to my neighbour who likes to wake up early in the morning to make sure her birdbath has enough water for the bird to cool down from the summer heat.
Fer~ I hope my trial growing them in autumn will provide bigger blooms.
Mr. H ~ The sunflower does make the garden look so much cheerful when other plants are greatly affected by the heat. My conclusion that Early Gem sweet corn variety will grow better in cooler condition. We grow Golden Bantam last year and it was more heat tolerant than this new variety we tried.
Mom of M&Ms~ I hope it bring a happy smile to your daughter face.
Jennifer@threedogsinagarden~ Ah yes they do don't they smile their heart out and it is very infectious.
Kak Shidah~ I hope I have success collecting the seeds than I can share my kuaci organik ;-).
Kwee Peng~ The seeds are at the centre of the bloom. It is hiding behind the nectars used to be. The seeds will be ready if you just gently brush the centre head and it easy to come off ( refer to my second last photo)the pollen or nectar where the seeds are. In this case, the sunflower seeds are not ready still immature it is white and you can see like small flower on top of the seeds from my photo. The sunflower mammoth seed is easier to see and the evening sun sunflower is rather shy a bit obscure maybe like the one you are growing. Try to rub on the centre gently and see wether it drop off easily or not. The seeds is hiding back there.
Milka~ I am craving for kuaci organik hehehe....Your daughter will like the mammoth it is always fun for kids.
Kitchen flavours~ I hope it will germinate for you soon.
Oh I have serious sunflower envy. The first time I planted sunflowers a few years ago, we had more sun and managed to get some beautiful ones. This year, we have too many surrounding trees outside our apartment block, so my two sunflowers that finally grew were very stunted! (about 1m tall only, so sad). All the other seeds either got eaten by ants or didn't sprout. Never mind, I'll just admire your amazingly stunning flowers instead :) Hope you get your kuaci!
ReplyDeleteSunflower takes up too much space in my potager... probably not growing them... but real beautiful sunflowers you have there... happy eating (the seeds)...
ReplyDeleteGreat photos... like the small seed to a big sunny flower! Lovely... / Anna
ReplyDeleteso much meaning... how can a little dark seed come out to be such a pretty sun-loving beauty... awesome.
ReplyDeleteflowers at Woman’s elan vital
insyallah jika jumpa benih bunga matahari kat kedai Cm akan cuba menanamnya.Sangat teruja melihat bunga matahari yang Diana tanam ni..besar dan sungguh cantik.Selama ini bila tanam bunga matahari terbuang begitu je.Kali ni dah tahu kegunaannya.Thanks dear:)
ReplyDeleteGorgeous! Sunflowers are so very beautiful...interesting to read all about your adventures with a mammoth! ;D
ReplyDeleteOoh, if you can beat the birds to it that should be some yummy sunflower seeds! I laughed out loud at the idea of a historic woolly mammoth sized sunflower, too. :)
ReplyDeletewow what beautiful shots! i wish I could have a garden like yours!
ReplyDeleteDear Diana,
ReplyDeleteYou really are the champion sunflower queen! Congratulations on the success of your plants. I've only managed to grow some medium-sized ones last year, but the grasshoppers loved them too much.
Thanks for the note on your post to let your readers know about my Malaysian Garden Bloggers' Corner. That's very sweet of you.
Rosie
They look beautiful! I am a big fan of mammoth sunflowers and they are the only sunflowers that I have grown. This spring I am going to sow seeds at different times. So, I will continually have some blooms a little longer in my garden. I wish they did last longer! Pretty post!
ReplyDeleteOh, I love sunflowers. Your shots are just gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteErika B
Such a lovely sunflowers! I love them so much...so does the pest!
ReplyDeleteI will sow new batch of sunflower seeds you gave soon.
hi.. i'm interested on your mammoth sunflower.. is there any chance i can get to buy some seeds from you? thanks in advance.. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Janna, you can visit my other blog Kebun Bahagia Bersama regarding the sunflower seeds.
ReplyDeletedkat mana nak beli sunflower seed yg jenis mammoth ni??
ReplyDelete