Detailed Explanation of the Key Points of Cut Flower Sunflower Cultivation Techniques

Cut flowers are obtained by cutting the blooms from the blooming, vibrant sunflowers for flower arranging, making them into bouquets, flower baskets and other floral decorations. Therefore, cut flower sunflowers are mainly varieties grown for decorative purposes. Below is an introduction to the cultivation techniques of cut flower sunflowers.

Suitable germination temperature: 24°C

Suitable growing temperature: 13-18°C

Site selection:

Cut flower sunflowers are suitable for growing in most soil conditions. Simply choose a spot with good light and drainage.

Soil preparation:

Cut flower sunflowers are suitable for growing in relatively low-nutrient soil. Soil with an EC value above 0.7 will cause the plants to grow too tall. Excessive nitrogen fertilizer in summer will cause excessive growth of the plants, resulting in abnormal flower shape.

Sowing the seeds:

Sow the seeds directly into the seedbed and cover lightly with soil. Water thoroughly, and note that the soil needs to be loose with enough oxygen. If sowing in a greenhouse, the maximum room temperature is 25°C and the minimum temperature is 10°C. If sowing outdoors, ensure the soil temperature is 10°C or above. The seeds germinate in about 6 days. The ideal spacing is 15*15 cm. Dense planting will help reduce the number of side branches, making it easier to produce 12 cm flower heads.

Temperature:

The nighttime temperature should not be lower than 10°C, and the daytime temperature should not be higher than 25°C

Fertilizer:

Producing high-quality cut sunflowers requires only a small amount of fertilizer. Spray a balanced calcium nitrate fertilizer with a nitrogen content of 50-75 ppm, and keep the medium EC value at 0.6-0.7. To keep sunflower leaves a healthy color, supplement 30 ppm of magnesium with magnesium sulfate every month. Water moderately to avoid excessive growth or weak growth of the plants.

Flowering period:

In summer it blooms in about 60 days, and in winter in about 80 days, though this also depends on the temperature and day length at the cultivation site. Generally, under a day length of less than 12 hours, the plants bloom faster, but the flower disc and stem are smaller. Under long-day conditions of more than 13 hours, the plants bloom later, but the flower disc is large and the stem is tall.

Harvest:

Harvest when the flower bud is about 1/4 open. To ensure the longest vase life, it must be harvested at the right time; delaying the harvest will shorten the vase life.

Vase care measures:

Place it in a vase filled with fresh water. Usually the flowers last 10-14 days (it is recommended to trim the base of the stem each time the water is changed, which will improve the vase time). It is recommended to place the vase in a cool room (7-10°C), while avoiding direct sunlight.

The above is the cultivation technique for cut flower sunflowers, and we hope it is helpful to you. To learn more agricultural knowledge, please follow Huinong Xuetang!

Cut Flower Sunflower Cultivation Techniques

The cut flower sunflower variety 'Golden 08' has emerged on the market in recent years and has gained recognition from a large number of growers and professionals. It is currently grown in more than ten cities including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Xi'an. At the 7th China International Flower Expo held in 2009, this variety won the bronze award for fresh cut flower materials.

'Golden 08' is an annual herbaceous plant of the genus Helianthus in the Asteraceae family (sunflower family). It prefers warmth, tolerates drought and high temperatures, and has good lodging resistance and adaptability. It can be grown year-round (in northern China, it needs to be grown in protected facilities in winter). This variety is not easily affected by pests and diseases, tolerates dense planting, and can be managed extensively.

Cultivation Management

1. Raising seedlings. Transplanting seedlings can improve plant uniformity and the yield rate of marketable cut flowers. Seedlings can be raised in plug trays and nutrient pots. The seedling substrate ratio is: two parts peat, one part vermiculite and one part sand, and a small amount of organic fertilizer can also be mixed in. Where conditions do not allow, seedlings can also be raised by the field seedling method. The specific method is to make a small raised bed about one meter wide, level and finely rake the bed surface, and sow at a spacing of 5 cm × 5 cm. 'Golden 08' is a hybrid F1 generation seed, and its ability to push through the soil is relatively weak, so it should not be sown too deep; generally about one cm is sufficient. After sowing, cover with soil and press lightly. If raising seedlings in winter and spring, cover with film to keep warm and shorten the emergence time. Keep the soil moist after sowing. In summer, seedlings generally emerge 3 to 5 days after sowing, and in winter and spring, they generally emerge in about 5 to 10 days.

2. Transplanting. Transplanting as early as possible can shorten the recovery period and also prevent the occurrence of "leggy seedlings". Generally, transplanting can be done once a pair of true leaves has grown. The planting spacing is 20 cm × 20 cm.

3. Water and fertilizer management. After planting and recovery, control water appropriately to prevent excessive growth. After budding, water appropriately according to plant growth to meet growth needs. It is not recommended to apply base fertilizer, so as to avoid overly sufficient fertility making the stems too thick and affecting ornamental quality. Depending on plant growth, topdressing or foliar spraying can be used.

4. Cultivation and weeding. Growth is relatively slow at the seedling stage, so cultivation and weeding should be done well, and soil should be hilled up along with cultivation to enhance lodging resistance.

5. Removing lower leaves and side buds. Because planting is relatively dense, after budding the lower old leaves can be appropriately removed to increase air permeability and prevent the lower old leaves from being infected by diseases. 'Golden 08' rarely has side branches, but if individual plants develop them, the side buds should be removed as early as possible.

6. Crop rotation. Continuous cropping in the same soil should be avoided. After planting three or four crops, the land needs to be rotated, and soil disinfection should be done well to prevent the breeding of pests and diseases.

7. Disease control. The main diseases are bacterial leaf spot, rust, stem rot, powdery mildew, black spot and sclerotinia, etc., mainly harming the leaves. Pests include aphids, mirid bugs, red spider mites and beetles, etc. If they occur, targeted control can be carried out.

Harvest

The time required from sowing to flowering for 'Golden 08' is greatly affected by the growing season. In the Beijing area, when sown in the open field from April to August, it generally flowers 50 to 55 days after sowing. When grown in ordinary solar greenhouses in February, March, September and October, it flowers in 70 to 80 days. When grown in ordinary solar greenhouses in January, November and December, it generally flowers 100 to 120 days after sowing. Studies have shown that harvest timing has a great influence on the flower head diameter, final degree of opening and vase life of cut flowers. At harvest, it should be neither too immature nor too late; the specific timing can be determined according to the time needed from harvest to market. Usually, it can be harvested once the bud has split open and the yellow florets have extended out.

Oilseed Sunflower Cultivation Techniques

[Common Question] How are oilseed sunflowers cultivated?

[Expert Answer] Oilseed sunflower cultivation techniques:

1. Plot selection, sowing period, sowing rate and density determination

When planting sunflowers, continuous cropping or intercropping must be avoided. The same plot must be separated by at least 3 years; continuous cropping will lead to the occurrence of pests and diseases and an imbalance in soil nutrients, causing serious yield reduction. The soil salt content should not exceed 4500 plants/667 sq m, and the principle of "sparse planting on fertile land, dense planting on poor land" should be followed, with density appropriately controlled. Sowing can be done from early April to the end of June. For spring sowing, the sowing period should be chosen on the principle of avoiding the high-temperature period during flowering, while for summer sowing, earlier is better. When planting sunflowers in saline-alkali land, the sowing period should be arranged before the return of salt.

2. Fertilization, irrigation and field management

Sunflowers have strong tolerance to poor soil and can absorb nutrients from deep in the soil, but they require a relatively large amount of fertilizer. Fertilization mainly consists of applying sufficient base fertilizer before sowing and topdressing at the budding stage combined with irrigation. Generally, before sowing, diammonium phosphate is used as seed fertilizer at 20 kg/667 sq m; seeds and fertilizer must not be mixed-sown, to avoid burning the seeds. At the budding stage, urea is applied as topdressing combined with hilling at 20-25 kg/667 sq m. Generally, sunflowers are irrigated 3 times during the growth period, once each at the seedling stage, budding stage and flowering stage, but irrigation in saline-alkali land should be given special attention, especially when the seedlings are 20-40 cm tall; improper irrigation can easily cause salt damage, or even dead seedlings. At the budding stage, irrigation with a large amount of water is better, as it can both meet the water requirement and suppress alkali. Field management mainly consists of cultivation and hilling to prevent weeds and lodging. Thinning and final singling should be carried out at the 1-2 pairs of true leaves stage; if too late, it will affect yield. At the seedling stage, special attention should also be paid to the harm of 2,4-D butyl ester to sunflowers.

3. Flowering period management

In production, sunflowers mainly rely on bees for pollination, so a sufficient bee source must be ensured. The best number of beehives in the field is 3 hives/hectare of bees. This can increase yield by 10-30%. If there are very few bees during the flowering period, artificial supplementary pollination should be carried out. Generally, the "powder puff" pollination method should be used, lightly touching flower disc to flower disc, pollinating 2-3 times. When pollinating, do not use too much force so as not to damage the stigma.

4. Timely harvest

Timely harvest of sunflowers is very critical. Harvesting too early results in seeds that are not fully mature, low 1000-seed weight, a high proportion of husk, high moisture content and reduced oil content, all of which affect yield and quality. Harvesting too late causes excessive dehydration of the seeds on the flower disc, making the seeds loosely arranged and prone to shattering, as well as damage by birds and rodents in the later period, and it may also encounter natural impacts such as rain and hail, failing to achieve the goal of increasing yield and income.

[Editor's Comments] Sunflower cultivation has many uses: as fresh cut flowers, for sunflower seeds to eat, or for oil pressing, and the cultivation and management methods for these three are all different. We previously introduced the cultivation methods for the first two, and now the First Agricultural Economics editor has introduced the cultivation and management techniques of oilseed sunflowers for you, hoping it is helpful to you. This article is introduced to you here, and thank you for your support!