{"id":6480,"date":"2014-08-24T12:00:24","date_gmt":"2014-08-24T16:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/?p=6480"},"modified":"2014-08-21T17:20:13","modified_gmt":"2014-08-21T21:20:13","slug":"mexican-sunflower-thrives-in-hot-summers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/2014\/08\/24\/mexican-sunflower-thrives-in-hot-summers\/","title":{"rendered":"Mexican Sunflowers Thrive In A Hot Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tithonia<\/a>

Tithonia + swallowtail (photo by Joy Stewart, Bristol, TN<\/p><\/div>\n

Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundiloba<\/em>) is a fast growing annual that produces vivid orange-red zinnia-like flowers from early summer to autumn frost. It is native to Mexico and Central America. Dark green leaves remain blemish-free all summer long. Snails and slugs are occasional pests during wet summers or when irrigated overhead.<\/p>\n

Plants grow 3-4 feet tall and 2 feet wide by the end of summer, and may reach 5-6 feet high. Its brightly colored summer flowers are supported on strong stemmed plants. Blooms make excellent cutflowers. <\/p>\n

As its name hints, Mexican sunflower (tithonia) thrives in hot sunny location and languishes where summer is relatively cool. In the spring do not rush to plant; wait until all dangers of frost has past in your area. Plant in well-drained, moderately fertile soil. Mulch and feed the flower bed with a slow release fertilizer such as Osmocote\u2122 or Nutricote\u2122 at planting time. Staking may be needed if set in a part sun and\/or windy location. Those growing in containers may also need some support.<\/p>\n

Flowers are butterfly magnets, particularly swallowtails. Monarchs, bees, hummingbirds, and other pollinators visit the blooms for nectar. Generally, deer leave tithonia alone. <\/p>\n

Leading cultivars include old-time favorite \u2018Fiesta Del Sol\u2019 and \u2018Torch\u2019 (series includes orange and yellow cultivars). Established plants, usually after 6-8 weeks in the garden, demonstrate exceptional drought resistance.
\n

\"Mexican<\/a>

Mexican sunflower in late summer<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundiloba) is a fast growing annual that produces vivid orange-red zinnia-like flowers from early summer to autumn frost. It is native to Mexico and Central America. Dark green leaves remain blemish-free all summer long. Snails and slugs are occasional pests during wet summers or when irrigated overhead. Plants grow 3-4 feet tall […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[444,747,749,710,674,806,665,602,745,1148,551,202,843,823,706,646,113],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6480"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6480"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6480\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6509,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6480\/revisions\/6509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatgrowsthere.com\/grow\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}