Sunflower Plants at 36 Inches Tall

Today's sunflower plant measurement is made on the 51st day since the Burpee Sunflower Seeds were planted in the ground. At 43 days, the tallest height reached 24 inches. That is a growth of one foot in one week's time.

Sunday, May 4th, my tallest sunflower plant is actually over 36 inches tall. It is actually nearly 38 inches tall. This plant is in the middle of the second row.

Sunflower Plant Height of Thirty-Eight Inches at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

The sunflower plants which I have been charting with measurements are at 36 inches in height. These plants are at the end of the fourth row, nearest the house.

Sunflower Plant Height of Thirty-Six Inches at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

If you look to the right of my hand and measuring tape, you will see the solar patio light. I repositioned three of them out of the sunflower garden as the plants were obscuring the sunlight from them.

THE WIDEST SUNFLOWER PLANTS

I have been seeing consistent growth on the sunflower plants from the organic seeds. Those are the plants which have more leafy leaves.

Sunflower Plant Width of Twenty-Five Inches at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

How about that? Those organic sunflower plants have leaf spans which are over two feet wide! They are not the tallest plants, but are rather charting the same heights as widths! Curious.

Sunflower Plant Width of Twenty-Four Inches at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

MEASUREMENT COMPARISON

1. 23 days - 6 inches wide by 7 inches across by 6 inches tall
2. 30 days - 9 inches wide by 10 inches across by 12 inches tall
3. 37 days - 11 inches wide by 13 inches across by 18 inches tall 
4. 43 days - 18 inches wide by 18 inches across by 24 inches tall
5. 51 days - 24 inches wide by 25 inches across by 36-38 inches tall 

I really think the extra growth can be attributed to the extra addition over the weeks of Sta-Green Potting Mix and the application of Kgro All-Purpose 24-8-16 Water Soluble Plant Food on the 42nd day. Plus, we have had several days of rain this past week and finally a sunny SUNday!

Sunflower Garden Three Rows at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

L to R: Tall, taller, tallest! It is wild how the growth in my sunflower garden rows was rather the opposite last year in my first garden. This year, the taller plants are in the third and fourth rows nearest the house.

Sunflower Garden Four Rows at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

TAKE A LOOK AT MY SUNFLOWER GARDEN

This is the magic shot that I love to use for my time lapse photography for the measurement comparison! The sun was in my eyes and made this shot a little out of focus, but you can still get the idea of the growth. It is most dramatic when you compare that to last week's picture! See that picture near the end of that blog post.

My Second Sunflower Garden at 51 Days ~ JaguarJulie
Photo Taken: May 4, 2014

WHAT A JOURNEY THIS HAS BEEN

Reflecting back on the start of the journey and where it has taken us ... I knew I wanted to do my second DIY garden of sunflowers in 2014. I waited a bit longer this year to get started, planting the seeds directly into the ground on March 14, 2014. On May 2, 2014, I wrote about my first DIY garden of sunflowers, summing up all the work that went into that 2013 inaugural flower garden.

For my second DIY garden of sunflowers, I have diligently plotted the growth in my flower garden for 51 days! I remember my excitement when I saw the first seedlings emerge at 6 days only to then see them dug up by critters! I covered the seedlings for 21 consecutive days to protect them from the digging critters. I fertilized and watered and pulled weeds and removed slime molds of pink and yellow. I fed the orange tabby cat and tried to keep it from sitting on my sunflower plants.

It has been an incredible amount of work and too many hours to count. But, you know what? I wouldn't have had it any other way. The payout is coming when I get to see the sunflower blossoms.

It is like a science project in that I am using only sunflower seeds that I harvested from last year's garden.

Refreshing my mind on what Burpee Sunflower Seeds I started with in my first DIY garden of sunflowers. In that picture, you can see the very three packets of Burpee's I used : Del Sol Hybrid (Pollenless), Summer Evening Mix, and Summer Cutting Garden Mix. In the end, I got a lot of height and the most amazing mix of colors. This year, I have great expectations!

Waiting ... when will I see the first bud? It has got to be some time this week!