Me, Elaine in a Sunflower field in Tuscany, in Italy

POEM TO A SUNFLOWER

I see you there in glory shining bright,
Following the sun and its path of light.
Standing tall above all others in the field,
You grow, conquer, and do not yield.

The little birds take great delight
In playing round you, from day to night.
With your petals of yellow and leaves of green
How very easily you are seen.

But there is more to you than first sight,
More than beauty and grander to delight.
Every beautiful aspect that appears,
Gives praise to the Father dear.

He made you a part of creation,
And you praise him in glorious celebration!
The beauty that within you is expressed,
Gives testimony to his greatness.

Sunflower, how I long to be like you!
Glorifying God in all I do.
Following the Son and His path of light,
To worship Him in His glory shining bright.

I can learn from you, my friend,
With every breath, praise to God, I might send.
With all of his creation telling the story,
Might I, with you, proclaim His glory.

~By Katherine R. Lane (April 19, 1995)~

A H ! S U N - F L O W E R

Ah, Sun-flower, weary of time,
Who countest the steps of the Sun,
Seeking after that sweet golden clime
Where the traveller's journey is done:

Where the Youth pined away with desire,
And the pale Virgin shrouded in snow
Arise from the their graves, and aspire
Where my Sun-flower wishes to go.

~By WILLIAM BLAKE~

THE WILD SUNFLOWER

At early dawn, like soldiers in their places,
Rank upon rank the golden sunflowers stand;
Gazing toward the east with eager faces,
Waiting, until their god shall touch the land
To life and glory, longingly they wait,
Those voiceless watchers at the morning's gate.

Dawn's portals tremble silently apart;
Far to the east, across the dewy plain,
A glory kindles that in every heart
Finds answering warmth and kindles there again;
And rapture beams in every radiant face
Now softly glowing with supernal grace.

And all day long that silent worship lasts,
And as their god moves grandly down the west,
And every stem a lengthening shadow casts
Toward the east, ah, they love him best,
And watch till every lingering ray is gone,
Then slowly turn to greet another dawn.

~By Albert Bigelow Paine~

GARDEN OF SUNFLOWERS

A garden of Sunflower beckoned to me -
Come join us, my lady, and joyous you'll be!

We're large ones and small ones, some dainty and fair,
And even some delicate to wear in your hair.

We follow the sun, swaying slowly without a care,
We have a new dance that with you we will share.

Gently hold onto our leaves, allow us to lead the way,
To our Sunflower two-step, dancing throughout the day.

I couldn't resist them, so dandy a sight!
So off I did go in my Sunflower flight.

What a glorious time, right up til twilight,
And then I had to bid my Sunflowers good-night.

So happy were we, a long day filled with fun,
Upon leaving I kissed them, each and every one.

So tender the moment, as I turned to leave.
With eyes brimmed with tears, could I truly believe?

OH! It was so true!! I then knew it to be!!!
I had to smile, 'cause they were all winking at me!!!!

~Author Unknown~

A FEW SUNFLOWER FACTS

Did you ever wonder how Sunflowers got their scientific name Helianthus? It comes from two words, Helios meaning sun, and Anthos, meaning flower. The sunflower "often" follows the sun, and this characteristic is how got its name.

The Sunflower is a good bee plant, ours have been covered in bees this summer.

In many parts of Europe sunflowers have provided/and still provide leaves for smoking, flower buds for salads, flowers for dyes, and oil for cooking.

I read somewhere that there are 67 species of sunflowers, growing in the various countries of the world, but I have a feeling...that the number is way higher now :-)

The sunflower is not one flower, but a cluster of more then 2000 tiny flowers growing together...go and have a closer look next time you come face to face with one.

A sunflower's head can grow to be as big as 2 feet across and the plant itself can be as tall as 18 feet. Well this year our tallest one got to over 10 feet tall, so maybe next year they will be taller :-)

The tallest sunflower grown on record was 25 feet tall and was grown in the Netherlands. Well I wonder if this record has been beaten yet?

The largest sunflower head on record measured 32 1/2 inches across its widest point and was grown in Canada. Again, I wonder if this year this record has been beaten.

The shortest mature sunflower on record was just over 2 inches tall and was grown in Oregon using the Bonsai technique. Wow that is tiny, we grew some short ones this year, but they were still taller than we thought when fully grown.

The sunflower is the state flower of Kansas.

The sunflower is the national flower of Russia.

The French word for Sunflower is tournesol, or literally "turn with the sun".
and In Spain and Italy: Girasol
and In Germany: Sonnenblume

Flower Meaning -
Dwarf Sunflower: Adoration
Tall Sunflower: False Riches

GROWING SUNFLOWERS

Whatever the variety, sunflowers are quick-growing, undemanding plants. All they need is full sun, but they do prefer well-drained soil.

I start growing mine in the greenhouse, but the seeds can be sown straight into the soil, both done in the Spring.

SUNFLOWER CRAFT

Make a Sunflower.

Materials Needed:
Paper Plate
Glue
Sunflower Seeds
Yellow Paint

Instructions:
Cut around the edge of the paper plate to make petal shapes.
Make sure you leave the center big enough to add your seeds.
Paint the flower-shaped plate yellow.
After the paint dries a littlebit,
squeeze a generous amount of glue into the center of your flower
and stick on the sunflower seeds.

"Keep your face to the sunshine
and you cannot see the shadow.
It's what sunflowers do."
by Helen Keller

The person who made these graphics,
is no longer able to be traced.


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