A combination of animal manure and chemical fertilizer has won Toowoomba State High School students The University of Queensland sunflower competition.
For months, students from 34 schools across the state have been watering, fertilising and nourishing their sunflowers to measure the heaviest and biggest specimens.
More than 1000 budding greenthumbs from UQ to primary and high school students took part in the sixth annual School of Land and Food Sciences’ Sunflower Growing Competition.
Toowoomba’s Grade 8E class at Wilsonton grew the eight heaviest sunflowers winning first and second prizes with flowers weighing about 1.51kg and 1.46kg.
Class teacher John Davidson and 14-year-old student Cameron Saal, said the key to their growth was feeding the plants EX7 fertiliser and manure from their sheep, goats, cows and alpacas.
They kept their plants facing north, in the open and well watered.
Growing and collecting data on their plants’ growth was part of their maths science project.
Sunflower competition organiser Andrea Adkins said she was pleased that the number of participants had more than doubled from last year.
She said the sunflower competition was growing exponentially and still had enormous potential and appeal.
UQ certificates, a trophy and a first prize of $275, $75 for second and $50 for third were presented at the UQ Centre at St Lucia yesterday.
Other sunflower winners were Bree McGill from Cleveland District State High School, with the smallest sunflower weighing 6.3 grams.
Cleveland also won the most multi-headed sunflower with 11 heads.
UQ vet science student Andrew Hemming grew the most twisted sunflower while Toowoomba State High also won the most goat-eaten-sunflower.
Some persistent Year 4s from Ironside Primary School won the encouragement award for the sunflower most eaten by grasshoppers.
They kept toiling over their pots even after three raids on their crops by grasshoppers.
A 1.8kg sunflower, grown by UQ agricultural science student Kate Rigg, won last year’s competition but the record stands at over three kilograms.
UQ agricultural student Peter Kopittke grew the 150-centimetre recordholder which weighed 3010 grams.
Lecturers spoke to students about plant science, food science, nutrition and soil and environmental science during the weigh-ins.
Guest speaker was the chief scientific advisor of the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries and Queensland Great, Dr Joe Baker
Sunflowers had to be grown from allocated seeds in containers no bigger than 11 litres without hydroponics.
For more information contact: Sunflower competition organiser Andrea Adkins on (07) 3365 1175, a.adkins@uq.edu.au or UQ communications officer Miguel Holland on (07) 3365 2619, m.holland@uq.edu.au.
