A CWMBRAN family have secured their eighth Guinness World Record after growing their world’s heaviest sunflower head – again.
Kevin Fortey, his son, his brother Gareth, and mum Marjorie broke their own record from 2021 by a whopping 1.23kg.
Their latest attempt weighed in at 6.44kg (14.21 lbs) – the equivalent of two newborn babies, a bowling ball, or three Chihuahuas.
The seed was planted in May, and Mr Fortey said it was a “real surprise” that it ended up breaking the record after the summer heatwave.
“When I saw the size of the plant, it wasn’t as large as normal,” he said. “I didn’t think the head would be as large as our previous record.
“We were going away on holiday, so I though I might as well chop this.
“The weight of it falling into my arms, I thought ‘Wow that’s heavy’.”
Mr Fortey then went about officially recording the sunflower head – which was so big it had to be weighed at a Post Office – and the record was verified in February.
“It came as a real surprise when the email came through,” he said. “I punched the air a few times.”
The seed used comes from a line going back more than 100 years, bred on the family farm in Suffolk – aptly named the Fortey Giant Sunflower.
Mr Fortey said his dad used to grow sunflowers with heads weighing four to five pounds, and since his death in 1996, he and his brother Gareth have continued to reselect the seed – creating what is now a multiple world record breaking seed line.
The seed was brought back to Wales and initially planted in a greenhouse, before being moved to the ground.
A variety of supplements were used to boost the health and growth of the plant, and the family used Guano – a fertiliser made from bat excrement – on the soil, as well as a Antelco 360 dripper system on a battery operated timer to make sure it was watered consistently and deeper in the soil.
It was harvested in October after 20 weeks, having reached a height of 3.35 metres (11ft).
Mr Fortey said the family now had their sights set on achieving 10 Guinness World Records.
“For us as a family, we have now achieved eight Guinness World Records, it's fantastic accomplishment and an indication of our determination to succeed and keep growing the community.
“Our dad unfortunately never achieved a Guinness World Record, however, he started the concept and a number of seed lines for competitive giant vegetable growing in the UK.
“We’re going to Hampden Court with Chris Fowler – who grows chillies – later this year. We’ve sent ahead some chilli and giant veg seeds and are going to give a demonstration where we can hopefully inspire the gardeners at Hampton Court.
“Inspiring others to have a grow is important. With the price of food and availability of fruit and veg at the moment, I think allotments will become more and more popular.
“And we’re looking at having a sunflower competition across the UK and challenging people to grow the biggest sunflower to make Britain bloom.”
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