Home Grown Veggies Archives - Surreal Gardening

Growing Sunflowers

This year we planted a roll of sunflowers between our yard and our neighbors yard. I really liked the way they grew there. Next year I’m going to expand our sunflower garden. I want to plant little groups of them randomly around our yards. I hope the bees continue to pollinate everything we are growing back there. We drive past this really big amazing garden all the time. and we noticed all of their patches of sunflowers and all the beautiful wildflowers in front of their sunflowers. I just love the way all the flowers are growing around their main crops. I mean its not just the beauty as to why all the flowers surround all the food crops.

Sunflower Varieties

There are many different varieties of sunflowers. They differ in size, color, and petal arrangement. Some exist because of selective breeding by humans, others arise from natural hybridization. Sunflower species can interbreed and sometimes this leads to a new species with even more unique traits. Sunflowers are some of the coolest flowers. They bring color to our garden and life to our garden.

Flowers grown around food crops serve as a trap crop. This is a plant grown strategically to attract pests away from the main crop. By attracting pests to the trap crop, the main crop becomes less susceptible to insect damage. This approach makes pest management easier.

Health Benefits of sunflowers

Sunflower seeds, and the leaves offer a range of health benefits. They are a great source of magnesium, vitamin E, selenium. They have been known to reduce inflammation, support heart health, and boost the immune system. Sunflower seeds even contribute to better skin health, and even regulate your mood.

Sunflowers in my opinion bring happiness. They are always buzzing with love. Swaying with the wind. And their colors always make my soul smile. They are super easy to grow and grow best planted straight into the ground from seed. I have learned through trial and error that sunflowers do not like to be transplanted. It always seems to stunt their growth. From personal experience I say plant in late spring, once the ground has warmed. They love to be in a sunny location with well draining soil.

We have been eating fresh veggies from the garden this last week. I think homegrown tomatoes are my favorite! I love how they look when you cut them open. Their insides are such a dark red and none of them ever look the same. The flavor is so delicious. We have been eating them every night this week.

The tomatoes in the picture to the right were grown from my plant. I planted it in my garden in the spring of 2024. This and two other tomato plants survived the winter of 2024 and are still growing. I waited until the last freeze. Then, I trimmed all the dead leaves and branches. I continued until I reached the green parts of the plants. In no time at all the plants began growing again and started flowering. By May, we already had a plant full of green tomatoes and flowers. The first couple tomatoes didn’t look all that great. in fact I threw them into the compost. But the next group looked healthy and they were getting bigger.

I like to pick the them before they become dark red. I read somewhere that once they begin to change from the green stage, you can pick them. They will continue to go through their color-changing process and eventually turn red. I don’t remember where I read that from, but I always wait until they are orange then I pick them. From the orange color my tomatoes always ripen up nicely sitting on my kitchen counter. Plants spend all of their energy on growing their fruit. So when we pick the tomatoes it helps redirect their energy back to making the other tomatoes grow.

Insect repellent?

These tomatoes will ripen on the counter

Some people say that tomato plants, because of what is inside their leaves, are effective mosquito repellents. There is a lipid compound called IBI-246. This compound is found in tomato stems. It seems to repel mosquitoes, ticks, and some other bugs as well. The smell when you crush tomato leaves can release compounds that deter insects. I read about the possibility of tomato leaves being a natural mosquito deterrent. We can crush the leaves and rub them on our skin. I am going to have my girlfriend try this out. Mosquitoes find her to be super tasty. I have also read that applying leftover tomato juice from cutting up tomatoes can help. It stops mosquito bites from itching. Tomatoes are also known to be rich in thiamine (vitamin B1). Thiamine might contribute to masking our natural human odors. These odors seem to attract insects, especially mosquitoes.

Tomatoes are great for our heart. They have Lycopene and this powerful antioxidant helps reduce LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. They are also full of potassium which mean tomatoes can help regulate blood pressure. Both of these can potentially lower heart disease risk and help with heart health. Tomatoes are full of fiber which supports a healthy digestive system, that can also indirectly benefit heart health. Tomatoes are full of vitamin A which is great for our eyes and our skin. The vitamin C in tomatoes supports our immune function. The vitamin K and calcium in tomatoes helps with our bone strength.

There is so much health and goodness in tomatoes. Everyone should be growing tomatoes at their house. Grow a tomato plant at home! Tomatoes do best in the ground but you can also grow them in 5 gallon buckets. Don’t allow space to deter you from growing the best home grown tomatoes ever!

Happy Gardening!