With our Sunflower Walks in full swing at Pleasant Prairie Greenhouse, I thought it would be fun to share a little bit about sunflowers, their history, and the myths and symbolism surrounding them.
Sunflowers are native to the Americas and have been around for a very long time. Evidence of them has been found which dates them as far back as 3,000 BC, and they were probably domesticated and grown as a crop from about 1000 BC on. There are about 70 varieties of sunflowers. Many get 10-14 ft. tall, and some are as small as 14 inches. The tallest sunflower ever recorded, according to the Guinness World Records, was over 30 ft. Each flower has a large head that can contain up to 2,000 seeds.
Many sunflower varieties turn their faces to follow the sun across the sky, which is how they got their name. In one Greek myth, nymph named Clytie adores Apollo, the sun god, but Apollo does not return her affections. He loves another nymph instead. The lovesick Clytie sits on the rocks every day watching Apollo ride his chariot across the sky, turning her head to follow his every move. When she realizes Apollo does not return her affection, she her obsession only grows. She neither eats or drinks, and will not leave her post, gazing at Apollo longingly day after day, until she turns into a sunflower. That is why the sunflower turns it head toward the sun as it crosses the sky. Because of the myth, sunflowers often symbolize adoration and loyalty in love.
They are also seen as symbols of happiness, thankfulness, and bounty.
For the Pleasant Prairie Greenhouse Sunflower Walks, we plant a relatively common variety, the black oil sunflower (which usually face east when mature as opposed to following the sun). They grow to about 4-5 feet tall and are well liked by birds. People frequently ask us if we harvest the sunflowers once the Sunflower Walks are over. We do not. We leave them in the fields for the birds to eat over the winter, since it takes special machinery that we do not have to harvest them.
We started our sunflower walks to thank our customers for their business and create a cheerful place for people to visit. Our Albany Sunflower Walk has ended, but our Evansville walk has just started. We invite you to join us for our Evansville Sunflower Walk, which runs from late August through early to mid September (depending on how long the sunflowers bloom). Click on the Events tab at the top of the page for more information.
