FREE: Italian Sunflower seeds

The listing, Italian Sunflower seeds has ended.

The Italian White sunflower is a florist-quality sunflower that makes excellent summer cut flowers. They will and add a charming touch both to your garden and indoor arrangements.
For continuity of blooms, sow a succession of sunflowers every fortnight for six weeks in the early part of the growing season. In a hot summer, each cycle from sowing to blooming will take about 60 days.


Sowing:
Sow indoors in early spring, at 13 to 18°C (55 to 65°F) 4 to 8 weeks before planting outside, alternatively, the seed can also be sown directly where they are to flower in mid to late spring.

Sowing Indoors:
For early flowers, start indoors as early as February or March, to germinate in about 10 days at 60 to 65°F and plant out in April or May. Use 7.5cm (3in) pots and a good sowing compost. Sow one seed 2.5mm (1in) deep per pot. Water and cover with either polythene or bubble plastic to retain the heat, or place pots on a heated bench or in a propagator with the temperature set at 13°C (55°F).
Remove the covers when the leaves appear. Plant seedlings outside when they are large enough to be handled and the root system is well developed. Add garden compost to the soil if it is heavy or infertile.

Sowing Direct:
Plant outside as early as possible to miss heavy frosts, to germinate in about 1 to 3 weeks, in mid-April through mid-May. Sow seed 5cm (2in) deep and spaced 45cm (18in) apart in borders.
Water seedlings regularly and, when growing tall forms, feed sparingly with a liquid fertiliser when 60cm (2ft) high. Over-fertilisation can cause stem breakage in the autumn. Avoid splashing water or fertiliser solution on the stems or leaves.
You will receive 10 seeds and a gift as always.
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