How to Make a Sunflower House With Marigolds

Cultivate the sunny spot for the playhouse by working the soil with the garden spade. Sunflowers grow a long taproot, so work the soil down to a depth of about 8 inches to give the roots plenty of loose soil. Add 2 to 4 inches of compost over the top of the soil and work the two mediums together well. Rake the soil smooth.

Measure out the perimeter of the house with the tape measure. A standard size for a sunflower house might be roughly 6 feet by 8 feet. Make rows for planting along the soil with the hoe according to your measurements.

Drop two sunflower seeds every 6 inches along the rows, and cover them with about 1 inch of soil. Leave a 2-foot-long gap for the door along one long side of the house -- do not plant any seeds in this doorway area.

Sprinkle marigold seeds liberally along the entire perimeter where you planted the sunflower seeds, leaving the same doorway gap unplanted. Cover the marigold seeds with about 1/4 inch of soil.

Firm the soil down gently with your hands, and water the soil evenly. Keep the soil moist while the seeds germinate.

Thin the sunflower seedlings when they reach a height of about 4 inches, removing the weakest of each pair of seedlings.

Mix the fertilizer with water according to package recommendations and pour the fertilizer over the soil, fertilizing the sunflowers and marigolds once each week.

Continue watering and fertilizing the flowers during the entire growing season. With attentive care, the sunflowers should grow tall, and the marigolds will create a colorful border along the soil line.