I have two volunteer sunflowers this year. They're so cute! The top would be a mammoth sunflower - the variety is called Pike's Peak. The seeds are edible. I found them pretty delish after a light roasting and salting. If you've never pulled sunflower seeds off the heads in the fall, it's truly satisfying!
The bottom sunflower is a Van Gogh variety. The petals are large and soft, the seeds aren't necessarily developed for eating so you probably won't find them delish or satisfying. Because this is a hybrid, I was actually surprised to find this in my garden again this year growing so similar to last year! I thought when I saw it that it might revert to one of the parent seed traits instead of another year of Van Gogh. I will let this go to seed and drop the seeds in my front garden beds where either the squirrels can get them, or I wouldn't mind if they grew tall for people passing by on the sidewalk.
I have one other variety that is a maroon and gold (GO GOPHERS!); I purposely am growing those for my husband - he mentioned his favorite flower is a sunflower so I'm happy to accomodate that preference! Sunflowers are fun to grow and I love watching the birds try to land on the tall stalks.
Happy August!
