Sunflowers

[Meo]

Please be gentle with me - I am a novice twenty something city girl about to take her first foray into the horticultural world and am hoping that someone with slightly greener fingers than me will be able to help.

I have decided to grow a sunflower from the balcony of my flat in Paris -though I recognise this is an odd choice as it doesn't receive a vast amount of soleil.

Firstly - is this possible, or should I abandon such lofty ideas and stick to cacti?

Can a fully grown flower remain in the plant pot or does it absolutely have to be transferred into soil once it reaches a particular stage of maturity?

Finally, is now the right time? it's 23 degrees today!

Many thanks.