Gardening: Show support for Ukraine by planting sunflowers

Spokane is a long way from Ukraine and many of us are wondering how we can help its people as they deal with an uncalled-for war.

We can donate household goods for setting up new homes for the Ukrainian families finding their way to Spokane. We can make monetary donations to reliable charities. Or as gardeners, we can plant sunflowers, the national flower of Ukraine.

Spokane is home to some 30,000 Slavic immigrants, including many Ukrainians who fled religious persecution in the Soviet Union in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They are our neighbors , and we can show them our support by planting sunflowers wherever we can.

Sunflowers are easy to grow and can be planted anywhere they aren’t competing with other plants and there is plenty of sun, water and average soil. They are great along fences and walls, as borders in gardens and as forts for kids. They can even be planted in large pots on a deck. Just be aware that a good stiff wind later in the summer can blow them over.

Because they like warmer soil and are frost sensitive, they should be planted around mid-May. They sprout quickly and by late July should start blooming. Plant a new batch of seeds every two weeks through June for a staggered bloom time.

Be aware – slugs, deer and bunnies like to nibble on them, so overplant, put up a barrier or treat the plants with repellents. They are pollinator and bird magnets when they bloom and well into the fall.

Sunflowers will turn their heads to follow the sun through the day. This is a process called heliotropism and allows the plant to absorb the maximum amount of sunlight to drive photosynthesis. The flowers are actually of two kinds. The large center of the flowers is really hundreds of small flowers that will produce the seed. The outer rim of brightly colored petals are ray florets whose purpose is to attract pollinators.

The biggest decision about growing sunflowers is which size to plant. Sunflowers can range from plants a couple of feet tall to monster 12-foot giants. Read the seed packet carefully. You can even plant some of the black oil sunflower seeds you feed your birds and they will grow into a medium-sized plant with multiple smaller flower heads. There are even some perennial varieties that will last several years. Here are some examples of the dozens of varieties of sunflowers available.

Little Becka has bright yellow flowers and grows about 3 feet tall and is perfect for pots. Sunforest Mix grows over 12 feet tall and is perfect for a children’s playhouse and forest. American Giant and Russian Mammoth will both grow to over 12 feet tall and make good hedge plants as well as edible seeds.

Tip of the week: Go after the early cool-season weeds and grasses now, then mulch the area to keep them from coming back. It’s still too cold to use herbicides.