10 sunflower garden ideas

Sunflower gardens are a beautiful way to adorn your landscape anytime. These flowers come in large and small varieties, and there are some fun ways to give them purpose on your land. I created a list of pretty sunflower garden ideas that you can use. Whether planting dwarf sunflowers or giant sunflowers, there’s an idea here for you. Check out these 10 sunflower garden ideas you can use in your gardens.

1. Plant a hedge of sunflowers

A hedge of sunflowers is a beautiful way to create a border around your property or a garden bed. Plant tall sunflower varieties to block neighbors’ views or to keep your garden contained. It will look so nice against your lush green backyard.

A sunflower border also serves as great protection from the sun. If you don’t want your house or other less tolerant plants getting ruined by the sun, use a sunflower border to protect that space.

2. Try some dwarf sunflowers

Dwarf sunflowers are a great plant to have in your garden if you don’t want skyscraper-sized sunflowers in your yard. They grow closer to a foot in height and allow you to plant more of them. These miniature sunflowers are fantastic for cutting gardens and come in various colors, shapes, and sizes.

Dwarf varieties are perfect for any sized garden and make lovely summer flower arrangements. Here are 10 of my favorite dwarf sunflowers to grow in the garden. Choose any species of dwarf sunflower that makes you happy. These sunflower garden ideas involve a dwarf sunflower or two, but who would complain?

3. Create a cutting garden by growing florist sunflower varieties

Sunflowers are lovely flowers to add to any bouquet or flower arrangement. Plant a cutting garden full of them, so you always have some on hand. Plant sunflowers that you know won’t produce pollen since they will most likely end up indoors.

Some popular cutting sunflower varieties are Autumn Beauty, Sunrich Summer Provence, Teddy Bear, Red Torch Mexican Sunflower, Chianti, Buttercream, and Jade Sunflowers.

You can read about popular sunflowers for cutting gardens in my blog post.

4. Grow a sunflower maze

Growing your own sunflower maze is a fun way to prepare for the summer and fall months. To plant one, outline your maze in flour and then plant accordingly. It’s recommended that you plant seeds 6 inches apart and lay down your flour on a day with no wind (so it doesn’t all blow away).

Place mulch over your sunflower seeds to keep them in place, and then watch as they begin to grow and form your maze. Water your seedlings daily. This is such a fun way to make your garden interesting!

Once your maze has grown, it’s a fun place to walk through and eat your edible seeds. Bring a little sunflower bag and collect seeds from the flower heads as you go.

5. Plant a sunflower photo backdrop

In many states, it’s very intriguing to spend a day in the local sunflower field. People will travel far and wide to take pictures and see the giant flowers. They make lovely backdrops, whether in a field or planted against a wall. If you plant sunflowers them against a wall, choose a wall with some color or texture that will look nice against the flowers. A red brick wall or painted palettes would look nice.

If you plant them in your backyard, place them close together for a pretty backdrop in the late summer and fall months. You may also hang marquee lights nearby for a fun ambiance at night. This is one of my favorite sunflower garden ideas!

6. Plant branching sunflowers for an extended blooming season

Branching sunflowers are great because they extend the blooming season of the sunflowers. You can cut some of the flowers while leaving others behind. You’ll be able to enjoy new blooms across a span of months instead of just a few weeks.

These tall sunflowers provide great coverage for other plants below as well. Use them to block the sun from smaller plants that don’t like as much sun. Here are 10 branching sunflowers you will love. Just plant a sunflower seedling and watch them do their work. They will look so nice in your flower garden.

7. Line a walkway with sunflowers

If you have a large space of land that you want to be covered in plants, line your walkway with tall sunflowers. It makes a lovely path that brings brightly colored blooms throughout the late summer and fall months.

Plant a variety of branching and single stem sunflowers for fun variety along the path. It will look cool to have different colors instead of the same plant as you walk.

You can also choose a variety of sunflower seeds that will produce different colors. Sunflowers come in light yellows, oranges, and even auburn colors. Choose any colors you like and get creative.

8. Plant a sunny entranceway

Have a fence or gate that protects your property? Here are some fun sunflower garden ideas. Plant tall sunflowers right beside the entrance to greet your guests. They are a bright and cheery welcome to anyone coming to visit. They’re a great plant to have growing beside a tall fence post. The fence post will support the sunflower stalks if you need to tie them to a stake, and the sunflowers will give a pop of color with their yellow blooms.

This larger-than-life display does attract bees and other bugs, so be sure this won’t become an issue.

If you are looking for long-term options for your sunflower garden, these perennial sunflowers bloom yearly.

• Ashy sunflower
• Western sunflower
• Swamp sunflower
• Giant sunflower
• Cheerful sunflower
• Maximilian sunflower
• Jerusalem artichoke

9. Plant sunflowers in pots for a sunny addition

Plant miniature sunflowers in pots so you can have them sitting on your deck or patio. They are a wonderful sunny addition to any sitting area and will surely bring a smile to your face. Planting sunflowers isn’t difficult and just requires plenty of watering. Place your potted sunflowers anywhere you would like and move them around as needed.

If you are ambitious enough, sunflower basket sunflowers or a vintage washtub planter are a nice aesthetic for a porch or deck area. Instead of potted sunflowers, use a fun container lined with well-drained soil to house your sunflowers.

10. Build a sunflower trellis in your sunflower garden

Since sunflowers grow upwards, plant them beneath a wooden trellis. Instead of putting the trellis vertically, stake or suspend it above the ground so it creates a mesh-like pattern.

As they grow, they will find their way through the trellis slots, making a lovely garden display. The trellis can give tall sunflowers support and is very pretty to look at. Large sunflowers with bright yellow blooms do best for this garden decoration.

A sunflower trellis can easily be made from bamboo stalks, old pieces of wood, and garden stakes nailed together. The flower heads will look so nice displayed on the trellis.

This can easily become a DIY Sunflower fort for kids. The sunflower garden can double as a fun fort for small children. Just plant sunflower seedlings in a large circle and add pieces of wood to help them grow nice and tall. Once fully grown, there will be a small play space for the kids.