sunflower

Sunflower with the scientific name Helianthus annuus comes from the Greek word helios meaning sun and anthos meaning flower. It is a member of a large family of flowering plants called tire chicory, which, although a small number of them are economically important, are planted all over the world.

Planting stage:
Sunflower can be cultivated in a wide range of soils, and it grows well in soils with a pH equal to 6.5-8.

Land preparation and tillage:
Land preparation is very important in sunflower cultivation. Because sunflower is a plant that is very sensitive to the structure of the soil and the deep root of this plant needs clean soil for its development, expansion and establishment in such conditions of heat, ventilation, and moisture for budding and young growth It provides

Planting date:
One of the most important factors in the success of sunflower cultivation is planting at the right time. The suitable planting date of sunflower depends on the climate of each region. The best time for cultivation is when the air temperature has reached at least 8-10 degrees Celsius, which is suitable for germination.

The date of cultivation is determined by different regions as described below.

Temperate and cold regions: the middle of April to the end of May

Tropical regions: late December to mid-March

Sunflower planting tool:

Sunflower can be grown with conventional and pneumatic seeders. In general, all seeders that can place seeds on the stack can be suitable for planting sunflowers.

Planting depth:
In sunflower, if the seed is planted too deep, the greening of the plant and its emergence from the soil may be delayed up to two times the usual time. The appropriate depth for sunflower planting is 3-6 cm. A depth of more than 6 cm causes small seeds to not germinate and uneven germination due to the difference in the seed’s germination capacity.

Seed:
The amount of seed used per hectare varies depending on the fineness and coarseness of the seed, its vigor, cultivar, planting time, late or early maturity, land preparation status, mechanized and traditional, water and rainfed conditions. The amount of seed in row or mechanized cultivation is usually 5-15 kg per hectare and for hand-sprinkler planting it is 15-20 kg per hectare. If the standard of rain-fed cultivation is irrigated, the seed amount for irrigated cultivation is 9-6 kg per hectare and for rain-fed cultivation 7. It is 5 kilograms per hectare.

Watering:
Although sunflower is a plant that tolerates drought to some extent, achieving high yields requires providing sufficient moisture in all stages of plant growth. All stages of plant life are sensitive to water shortage in some way, but three weeks before flowering to three weeks after is the most sensitive time to water shortage, and the lack of water during this period leads to irreparable damage.

Sunflower needs 6-7 times of irrigation during its growth period.

Cultivating and digging the foot of the bush:
It is very important to use the cultivator between the planting rows in sunflower cultivation. Because using a cultivator, in addition to weed control, causes the basket to break, loosens the soil at the feet of the bushes, aerates the soil, mixes fertilizer with the soil, moves nutrients in the soil and increases growth. Applying the cultivator one to two times in step 8- 10 leaves of 25-15 cm will increase the yield.

Feeding and fertilization:
Basically, the consumption of fertilizer should be based on the soil test. The production of sunflower seeds causes the release of 40-60 kg of nitrogen, 15-33 kg of phosphorus oxide, 75-120 kg of potassium oxide, and 120-75 kg of potassium from the soil. Therefore, the soil needs 60-120 kg of pure nitrogen fertilizer, 60-120 kg of oxide They need pure phosphorus and 50-100 kg of potassium oxide. Usually, one-third to half of the nitrogen fertilizer is added to the soil before planting and the rest along with or before cultivator planting between the rows (6-8 leaves) and harvesting is done immediately. About 130 kg of nitrogen is needed per hectare. Micronutrient fertilizers are also needed in sunflower cultivation, which will eliminate the needs of micronutrients and ultimately increase crop performance. These elements include: iron, manganese, zinc, copper, boron, chlorine and molybdenum.

Among the fertilizers produced by Yadnegar Structures Company (Cinco), we can recommend complete NPK chemical fertilizers for sunflower, considering that it also contains micronutrients, granular zinc nitrogen, zinc sulfate, and magnesium sulfate.