How to Keep Sunflowers from Falling Over

Sunflowers are very large, which makes them susceptible to strong winds and storms. Staking a sunflower is a good way to stabilize the plant and keep it unharmed when bad weather hits. The following will provide you some tips to keep your sunflowers from falling over.

Step 1 - Set up the Stakes

To properly stake a sunflower, you need a large bamboo pole or rod. Place the poles firmly in the ground near the sunflower so it will be easy to attach the sunflower to the poles for support.

While it's true that even very large sunflowers can stand up on their own, windy weather often causes drooping. In fact, it's quite common for some flowers up to 14 feet tall to stand up without assistance. It's recommended to stake a sunflower only to protect it from the elements.

Staking a plant keeps it safe in windy conditions, which is especially important if your area is prone to strong winds on a regular basis. If your sunflowers are located near a tree line, fence, or building, staking is appropriate because the structures surrounding the flowers may fall and cause damage during a windstorm or other inclement weather. A really bad storm can destroy a whole crop of sunflowers.

Step 2 - Drive the Stakes

Drive the stakes for your sunflowers into the ground before the seeds are planted. If you drive the stakes into the ground after the sunflower has started growing, you can cause damage to the root system.  

Step 3 - Secure the Stakes

Secure the stakes by driving them a few feet into the ground. Because the purpose of staking is to keep your sunflowers secure, it's very important to make sure the stake is firmly planted in the ground.  

Step 4 - Choosing a Size

Purchase the sunflower stakes from a garden center or nursery. Bamboo stakes come in a wide range of sizes, from a few feet all the way up to 12-foot poles. For sunflowers, it's a good idea to use stakes about half the size of the plant. For smaller varieties of sunflower, which only grow 6 to 8 feet, use stakes of about 7 or 8 feet. For giant sunflowers, consider using a 12 foot bamboo rod with a very large diameter.  

Step 5 - Tying the Stakes

Tying the sunflower to the stakes is an important step. Make sure you don't tie the sunflower too tightly to the stake, as this may cause damage by choking out the plant. Tie the sunflower to the stakes loosely by leaving a space that is a little bit larger than the width of the stem. This will give the sunflower enough room to move around. Make sure you use a non-abrasive cord or string that won't cause damage to the stem of the sunflower.  

Another way to prevent a sunflower from falling over is to create a mound around the base of the plant. Mounding is done by putting topsoil or composted manure around the sunflower. This secures the roots and helps prevent the sunflower from uprooting in strong winds.  

Dig a pit at the beginning of the year and then continue to fill it up as the plant grows larger. If you don't want to dig a pit, simply place dirt around the sunflower on level ground. Mounding promotes root growth and adds a lot of nutrients to the soil. Spread a large bank of compost manure around the base of the plant every few weeks, making sure to level the soil as much as possible so it won't wash away during a storm. You don't want to expose the roots of the sunflower to the open air.