Different Colors of Sunflowers

Yellow

• Yellow is the most well-known color that sunflowers come in. The blossoms are completely yellow, but the shade changes along the petals. The petals start out in a dark shade around the center and then they get lighter in color as they bloom outward.

Red

• Red sunflowers do not have completely red petals; this is primary evidence that the flowers are crossbred. The edges of the petals are often a very deep red as the color travels across the circumference of the petal. But the flower remains yellow in the center, and it often changes back to that color very close to the edge. Most of the petal's surface is yellow, but the edges are often a deep enough red to make it stand out.

Orange

• Orange sunflowers are pretty much the reverse of red ones. The petals are yellow along the edges and orange around the middle. Usually, the orange part takes up most of the entire middle part of the petal, even along the edges, with small traces of yellow popping out. It looks almost as if the orange color has been brushed on.

Brown

• Brown sunflowers have the least amount of yellow in them and are the darkest. The very tips of the petals can have traces of yellow, though it often is already orange. The petals then quickly change to brown, which takes up most of the surface. The is usually a bit of yellow at the inner edges, forming a bright ring around the pollen center. A brown sunflower looks a lot like a sun under an eclipse.

Blend Colors

• Some sunflowers have a more even blend of multiple colors. The tips of the flower's petals are yellow before briefly turning orange and then all the way into red. The amount of the petal's surface that is yellow and the amount that is red can vary with each flower, though the amount is usually consistent for all petals on one flower. The petals actually change back to yellow right at the inner edge where the petal joins the pollen center. These are very similar to orange flowers but with a much deeper center.