Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers

My selection of sunflowers to grow from seed this year include Chianti Hybrid and Mammoth Russian. I picked up a $1.59 seed packet of Burpee Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers from HomeDepot. What a surprise when I opened the package to find only 6 black sunflower seeds! I would have thought at least one dozen to the packet.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seeds from Burpee

On Saturday, March 17, 2018, I planted the 6 sunflower seeds in a long rectangular black planter. Within 5 days I actually had a sunflower seedling emerging.

The First Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedling on the Fifth Day

At 7 days, there were 5 sunflower seedlings. At 12 days, I was still waiting to see the 6th seedling ... I trust the sunflower seed is viable, but just taking its time. The packet states that seedlings will emerge in 7-14 days.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedling on the Twelfth Day

The Chianti Hybrid Sunflower is a rich, vibrant burgundy-red 3-4" pollenless blooms. Burpee states that the bloom will be sparkled with gold. That sounds very much like the prized, wine-colored sunflowers I grew in my last two annual sunflower gardens. I believe I created a similar, hybrid sunflower and didn't realize it was a Chianti Hybrid.

Beautiful Wine-Colored Sunflower from Leesburg FL Garden June 30, 2016

According to the Burpee seed packet, the sunflower usually takes 55 days to bloom. And, the height should be 4 to 5 ft. My wine-colored sunflowers, as shown in the above photo, were always well over 6 ft. in height!

Beautiful Wine-Colored Sunflower from Jacksonville FL Garden April 22, 2015

In my last Jacksonville, FL sunflower garden, I grew some spectacular wine-colored sunflowers. That sunflower collage mosaic shows the various sunflower blossoms ... surely looks like that might have been a Chianti Hybrid Sunflower!

Fifteen Days Update : April 1, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings April 1, 2018

It has been fifteen days on the planting of the sunflower seeds. It seems the 6th seed is not happening ... although you never know! Like waiting for the fat lady to sing or something. I used that planter as a starter for the Russian Mammoth Sunflower seeds. Drilling 12 little holes with my gloved pointer finger, I planted one dozen of those seeds. Hoping for a mammoth experience!

Twenty-One Days Update : April 7, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering

As soon as the Chianti Hybrid sunflower seedlings were a couple of inches, I opted to cover each one with an empty Lipton Green Tea plastic bottle to protect them.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering

Preparing the bottles, I cut off the top and bottom, removed the labels, and then punched 2 round holes in the bottom on opposite sides.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering

I then anchored the bottles with landscape pins that I was using to secure my weed barrier cloth.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering

Now, the new seedlings can stand up rather than flop over.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering

And, they are protected from hungry rabbits, squirrels and birds!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Seedlings Protective Covering April 7, 2018

Covering the Chianti Hybrid Sunflower seedlings with the plastic bottles produced a greenhouse effect. Measuring the tallest seedling, it came in at a solid 5 inches on April 7, 2018. The past couple of days there has been a bit of a growth spurt.

I've been nurturing these seedlings for the past 3 weeks, moving them to the shed at night to protect them from nocturnal critters! During the day, if it is sunny and fairly calm, I have moved the container to the front yard garden for full day sun. Up above, you can see the container in the garden. There is a metal edging that encloses the area along with several small moth balls.

GROWTH PROGRESS OF CHIANTI HYBRID SUNFLOWERS

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 10 inches tall on April 24, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 26 inches tall at 48 days on May 5, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 39 inches tall at 55 days on May 12, 2018

Sunflower Garden in Enclosure at 55 and 41 days on May 12, 2018

On May 12, 2018, it was 55 days for the 5 Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers and 41 days for the 9 Russian Mammoth Sunflowers. In the garden photo, you can see the tallest sunflower is the Chianti Hybrid in the middle back. The second tallest is the Russian Mammoth in the middle front.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 59 inches tall at 63 days on May 20, 2018

The star Chianti Hybrid Sunflower grew some 20 inches in just over one week as seen in the May 20, 2018 photo. The star sunflower is nearly 5 ft. tall and loaded with buds that will surely be blooming in a few days. Thanks to all that rain we have been getting over the past week in Central Florida.

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 59 inches tall at 63 days on May 20, 2018

The top bud on the star Chianti Hybrid Sunflower has turned and positioned itself towards the morning sun. We are getting a peek at the beautiful chianti or wine color blossom that is revealing itself. There are a number of tinier backup buds up the top stem!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower top bud at 65 days on May 22, 2018

Take a look at the two photos -- the one above and the one below -- of the bud and then the blossom. What a difference a day can make here in hot and humid Leesburg, Florida!!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 66 days on May 23, 2018

It is especially favorable to growing sunflowers, provided you can keep the bunnies, squirrels and birds from getting a little too curious and hungry. It seems a bird must have landed on one of the Chianti Hybrid Sunflower plants as the top portion of the stem was severely bent. I installed a orange metal stake to brace the plant so it doesn't snap in two!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 69 days on May 26, 2018

Looking at the rich color of this Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom, it surely seems to be more in the line of a rusty-wine color and not entirely chianti-wine colored as in the photo on the seed packet. Yes?

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower 66 inches tall at 69 days on May 26, 2018

FINALLY - CHIANTI HYBRID SUNFLOWER BLOSSOMS!!

I have been waiting for the other 4 Chianti Hybrid Sunflower plants to blossom so I could see if those blossoms are like the ones on the seed package. And, now, for the reveal ... yes ... I do believe the four remaining Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers are going to be more wine-colored! I honestly believe that the first sunflower plant, whose blossoms I have been sharing above, is actually an Autumn Beauty!!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 76 days on June 2, 2018

The first of the remaining 4 sunflowers to bloom has the prettiest color and shape! Now, this is more like it. Isn't that the most beautiful and rich color?

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 76 days on June 2, 2018

Sharing another sunflower's blossom -- I love to try and capture the blossom against the sky for a pretty contrast in colors. This is definitely a winner!!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 76 days on June 2, 2018

And, sharing yet another sunflower's blossom ... this one has a center that seems puffed out or more raised than the others. All three Chianti Hybrid Sunflower blossoms are quite striking in color!

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 77 days on June 3, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 77 days on June 3, 2018

Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom at 77 days on June 3, 2018

As the Chianti Hybrid Sunflowers matured, I was blessed to photograph some very pretty blossoms.

Pretty Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom June 14, 2018

Pretty Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom June 14, 2018

Sunflower Garden with Chianti Hybrids and Russian Mammoths June 15, 2018

The sunflower garden was pretty amazing during the middle of June 2018. The Chianti Hybrids were maturing as the Russian Mammoths were making their appearance.

Pretty Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossom June 20, 2018

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!

30 Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Heads for Drying June 20, 2018

By June 20, 2018, I already had cut off thirty Chianti Hybrid Sunflower heads for drying and harvesting seeds.

Final Chianti Hybrid Sunflower Blossoms June 27, 2018

On June 27, 2018, I cut several of the final Chianti Hybrid Sunflower blossoms for a vase and then took out the plants.

Sunflower Garden and Russian Mammoths June 28, 2018

You can see the empty spots in the sunflower garden where the Chianti Hybrids once stood! It was a bittersweet day to see them go as they were so pretty!

MESSAGE TO CONTENT SCRAPERS!

No, it is NOT OK for you to steal my copyrighted images and written content for your own purposes! I have put a lot of hard work into growing my own flowers and photographing them to share with my readers online. That doesn't mean you can just drop by and SNIP my flowers.

Cutting the Sunflower Heads from the Plants

On Friday, June 20, 2014, it was the 98th day of my second DIY sunflower garden. And, that was the first day that I began to cut off the sunflower heads to harvest them for seeds. I probably cut around two dozen of the larger heads. I checked the back sides to see that they were yellowing and indented and that the petals had already fallen off.

White Mommy Cat Inspecting Cut Sunflower Heads
Photo Taken June 20, 2014

Last year, it was closer to the first of June when I was harvesting the seeds from the sunflower heads. In 2013, I was able to use my Florida Room for the drying of the sunflower heads. This year, things changed significantly when I located the six baby kittens that the white mommy cat had stashed in my neighbor's bushes!

White Mommy Cat Inspecting Cut Sunflower Heads
Photo Taken June 20, 2014

Now the mommy cat and six baby kittens are enjoying the pleasures of my Florida Room. So, I am using my garage for the drying location. After cutting about two dozen sunflower heads, I put them in the lid to my 55-gallon trash can. That seemed to work quite well for supporting the heads while they dry. I placed the lid on the top of the garbage can in the garage and have left it there for the right time to harvest the seeds.

Today, June 24th, is the 102nd day of my sunflower garden. I have filled a second lid with the cut sunflower heads. I have also been cutting the smaller heads and placing them at the foot of a crepe myrtle tree at the back of my property. Yesterday, I found a squirrel had actually climbed to the top of one of my taller sunflower plants to chew off one of the heads! So, to keep those squirrels happy, I have cut several dozen sunflower heads to keep them happy.

The squirrels aren't the only critters climbing my sunflower plants! The female and male cardinal birds have been landing on the stalks and actually snapping a few plants. I've also seen the baby mockingbirds jumping around at the base of the sunflower garden. Numerous times, the hummingbird has made an appearance, but it doesn't stick around long enough for me to snap a photo!

By the way, yesterday morning I was working out at Bailey's Powerhouse Gym. Chatting with a friend for a while, she suddenly stopped and asked me, "you don't smoke pot do you?" I looked at her surprised and said, "no, but I was working in my sunflower garden this morning, cutting the heads." You see, I must have reeked of the pungent sunflower odor. When you are cutting the heads, you get a little sticky residue on your hands. And the sunflower leaves can impart a strong smell when you handle them! Don't be working in your sunflower garden the day of any job interview! They might think you smell like pot, or something!!!

P.S. Oh, mommy cat? Well at 8:45am on Friday, June 20th, I located the six baby kittens and brought them into the Florida Room. Next, I was looking for the right opportunity to bring in mommy cat. You can see she was hanging around when I was cutting the sunflower heads early in the afternoon. I didn't want to "grab" her because that might unduly frighten her. She had to be comfortable coming inside. Well, the opportunity presented itself at 3:45pm that day. Yeah, it took me six hours for her to be ready to be with her babies inside!

My DIY Garden of Sunflowers at 72 Days

It has been 72 days since I planted all those harvested sunflower seeds in my second DIY garden of sunflowers. Those 72 days have encompassed a lot of hours of my time tending to my sunflower garden. Early on, I spent 21 consecutive days covering my emerging seedlings to protect them from digging critters.

Looking out from my home office window, I am thankful of all the time I spent nurturing that garden.

My Second DIY Garden of Sunflowers at 72 Days ~ JaguarJulie
View out my Home Office Window
Photo Taken: May 25, 2014

From my home office, I can see a number of the beautiful sunflower blossoms. Pretty soon, I expect to see a lot more sunshine as all the plants are with buds. Some of the taller plants have multiple buds up and down the stem.

SUNFLOWER PLANTS OVER SIX FOOT

Ten days ago, at the 62nd day measurement of sunflower plant height, I reported three plants had attained 59 inches in height.

My Second DIY Garden of Sunflowers at 72 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 25, 2014

Today, I measured one sunflower plant at 78 inches. That is nearly 20 inches of growth in 10 days; wow, 2 inches per day!! Remarkable. You can see that the plants have been getting a lot of water because the leaves near the bottom of the stems are yellow. I have been watering them more recently because I did a second treatment of Kgro All-Purpose 24-8-16 Water Soluble Plant Food. I originally did my first plant food treatment on the 42nd day.

My Second DIY Garden of Sunflowers at 72 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 25, 2014

CHARTING THE PLANT GROWTH

1. 23 days - 6 inches wide by 7 inches across by 6 inches tall = 0.5 ft.
2. 30 days - 9 inches wide by 10 inches across by 12 inches tall = 1 ft.
3. 37 days - 11 inches wide by 13 inches across by 18 inches tall = 1.5 ft.
4. 42 days - 24 inches tall = 2 ft.
5. 51 days - 38 inches tall = 3 ft. 2 in.
6. 56 days - 49 inches tall = 4 ft. 1 in.
7. 62 days - 3 plants at 59 inches tall = 4 ft. 11 in.
8. 65 days - 2 plants at 63 inches; 1 plant at 66 inches tall = 5 ft. 6 in.
9. 70 days - 2 plants at 73 inches; 3 plants at 74 inches = 6 ft. 2 in.
10. 72 days - 9 plants over 72 inches; 1 plant at 78 inches tall  = 6 ft. 6 in.

My Second DIY Garden of Sunflowers at 72 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 25, 2014

SUNFLOWER POSTAGE

I think a neat part-time opportunity would be to design postage stamps for the United States Post Office! Hey, wait! I believe I already did that in my Zazzle shop.

BACKYARD GARDENER CONTRIBUTOR AT SQUIDOO

You might have already heard that on May 4th, I became the Backyard Gardener Contributor at Squidoo! This time of year, I am pretty immersed in my backyard gardens and particularly in my sunflower garden. That means, I don't have a lot of discretionary time for my writing. That's OK! I'd really rather be working that green thumb of mine out in the garden than at the keyboard.

My mom keeps asking me why I haven't been contacted to work for some large Home and Garden company to help them in their online presence. Because I have been a sort of brand ambassador for Burpee Gardens, always promoting Burpee Sunflower Seeds, I was thinking that would be a great company with which to work!

BLONDES THAT DIY

Another niche that I have launched is Blondes that DIY -- you know, blondes that do-it-yourself? Living in Jacksonville, Florida has allowed me to seriously explore that niche. And, more so lately since I am a single senior gal. Since my divorce in November 2010, I've found that I seriously NEED to learn how to DIY more things around the house. And, you know what? I have surprised myself along the way.

Are you a blonde that can seriously DIY? Hey, let's hear from you! Don't be shy.

Beautiful Early Sunflower Blossoms

It is equal time for the other beautiful sunflower blossoms that are blooming in my sunflower garden at 66 days. My first blossom was a dainty yellow one that arrived on Wednesday, May 14th. It was followed the next day, May 15th, by another dainty blossom, but with autumn or fall colors.

Today, I have already written one blog post to put the spotlight on that ah moment of the first autumn beauty sunflower blossom of 2014. It is a beauty and some of the photos were over the top; the best sunflower photos on the planet according to Bonnie! Thanks Bonnie ... us #blondesthatdiy have got it seriously going on ... Yes?!

I can honestly say that I have started to lose track of the emerging blossoms; i.e., which was third, fourth. There are so many magnificent sunflower buds in various stages of growth - so many different shapes and sizes and styles, much like fingerprints in that no two are alike.

CHECK OUT THESE BEAUTIES

Here are unedited beautiful sunflower blossom pictures direct from my Jacksonville Florida sunflower garden. These are the early sunflower blossoms ... which show what  variety you can have! By the way, thanks for enjoying my sunflower blossoms ... PLEASE DO NOT STEAL my original photography!

Pretty Yellow-Orange Sunflower Blossom

Pretty Yellow-Orange-Brown Sunflower Blossom

Pretty Yellow-Orange-Brown Sunflower Blossom

Pretty Yellow-Red-Orange Sunflower Blossom
JaguarJulie Hand with Pucci-licious Color Club Poptastic Nail Polish

Pretty Yellow Sunflower Blossom
JaguarJulie Hand with Pucci-licious Color Club Poptastic Nail Polish

Pretty Yellow-Orange Sunflower Blossom

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Are you impressed by all the variety that has been achieved with these beautiful early sunflower blossoms? I mean, aren't you surprised that sunflowers can have so many different types and colors of blossoms? Look at all the vivid colors. Look at the shape of the flower petals. There is a lot of artistic stuff going on there ... all thanks seriously to Mother Nature and to Burpee sunflower seeds. I thank Burpee for my fifteen minutes of fame.

May I recommend you try:

• Burpee 47902 Sunflower Autumn Beauty Mix Seed Packet
• Burpee Flower All Summer Sunflower Cutting Garden Simple Solutions Seed Packet

P.S. Do check out my unsolicited product review of Burpee Sunflower Seeds and my DIY Garden. And, then take a look at my story about My DIY Garden of Sunflowers. I must tell you that I am one of those Blondes that DIY - that's the new blog with the hashtag of #blondesthatdiy.

First Sunflower Blossom Emerging

I am happy to report that I detected my first sunflower blossom peeking out this morning from the bud. We are at 59 days and counting! What's interesting about it is that the plant is only about 35 inches tall. I have many other sunflower plants much taller than that plant, however, I didn't detect any other blossom emerging.

Could you guess what COLOR that blossom is? It rather is like what I saw in last year's garden ... that I had a number of shorter plants that blossomed first and they were all similar in color. The color? Yellow!!

Take a look at the peek-a-boo blossom:

First Sunflower Blossom Emerging at 59 Days : The Color Yellow
Photo Taken: May 12, 2014

I captured the sunflower bud and plant photos early on the morning of May 12th.

First Sunflower Blossom Emerging at 59 Days : The Color Yellow
Photo Taken: May 12, 2014

If you look at the middle of the plant photo and then move your eyes up a bit, you can detect the yellow blossom peeking out from the bud. You also get an idea of the height of that plant in relation to the others around it. In fact, the peek-a-boo blossom was rather hiding. I would have seriously thought I would be seeing a blossom coming out from the taller plants more into the sunlight. This one is actually on the back side of the fourth row nearest the house!

PRETTY SUNFLOWER BUDS

Over the course of the last several days, I have been capturing a lot of photos of buds. Oh my, but I can't wait until they open up and become blossoms because I think those will make more interesting pictures! However, since I have so many bud photos, I decided to run my own contest and try and select two favorites from the last three days of photography. Ready?

In the three rows above, you have two sunflower buds from May 10th, May 11th, and May 12. It would seem my favorites have a bit of red to the leaves. I'm thinking these may be the Autumn Beauty Sunflowers! These were probably the most defined buds, with the bud in the last row, on the left, actually looking much like a rosebud!

SUNFLOWER PLANTS OVER 4 FT.

This morning, I had about three different sunflower plants at 52 inches tall. When I went out to check on my garden this afternoon, it looked like two of those tall plants had grown more!

Here is a photo of the sunflower garden at 59 days with many plants over four feet in height!

My Sunflower Garden at 59 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 12, 2014

The blossoms are coming, the blossoms are coming! If you want an idea of what these will look like, check the pictures in the amazon widgets below. Those are for Burpee Sunflower Seeds ... that's what I used!