Sunflowers happen to be one of my favorite flowers. Even more amazing about this particular plant is that during development, it has mechanisms on the flower head that makes them tilt to follow the sun! Knowing of this very calculated and orchestrated mechanism that sunflowers have just makes me scratch my head when people say everything in nature occurs out of complete randomness and without an intelligent designer. No matter how hard I try to see things their way, logic always leads me to conclude otherwise.
It never occurred to me to plant sunflowers in FL simply because we lived in a place without a backyard even though the climate was well suited for the plant to thrive. I find the irony of my desire to try to grow sunflowers in a place where it’s practically gray about 2/3 of the year.
This post is mainly an update on a seedstarting post from last week. Today was the day I had to transplant my sunflower “babies” (lol). It seems it was time to grow these outside as they were growing too big for the planter. This variety are not miniature ones and though I would have liked to keep them next to me while I eat (ha!), it’s time to let go and let the magic of dirt and light do its work. This is my first attempt at planting sunflowers and I sure hope they grow to maturity.
I took that main picture from a produce farm right across where we used to live in FL. I am hoping I get to take another picture similar to that from my backyard. I hope there are no aphids or any other plant bug there is that’s going to mess with my babies. I also started to germinate the red sunflower variety called “Velvet Queen” which are supposedly shorter. I now understand my mother when she says she wants to go back to Asia because she misses her plants. I had gone so long not growing anything I almost forgot how rewarding it feels to see them produce fruit/flower, happy and thriving.
How do you think God feels about us when we mature and produce fruit for His kingdom?
Caeli, I wish I could click the like button a couple of times.
Now it’s time to tell you that while I once carefully tended houseplants in a West window, I have little experience gardening. But we did have a bird feeder a friend gave us. The seed mix had sunflowers in it and the birds used to flick seeds around as they fed. I told the Lord I would love some sunflowers and a crop grew from the scattered seed, the smaller variety. They were fun and it was joy to have an answer to my little prayer. Hope your baby plants flourish!
Thank you for sharing your answered prayer and testimonies to God’s goodness are always a joy and delight. Since it’s my first time trying to grow sunflowers, I desire that my first attempt would be a success. I could care for it to the best of my ability but there are factors I have no control of that could potentially affect that. Lack of Sun, Squirrels, stray cats, and I noticed this morning that some bug was feasting on one of the seedlings which explains the holes I am seeing on two other seedlings as I was trying to fix the support I put on the one with a broken stem. With all that, I am still hoping to see it fully mature.
My mother is flying back here again from the East coast since her international flight departs from PDX and I am hoping that some of my plants would start flowering by the time she arrives as she is quite a plant lover.
It would be lovely to enjoy your plants with your Mother – hope you can, Caeli! It’s wonderful that she has had the opportunity to visit with her children and share in your lives. My Mother, who died from a third bout with cancer when she was 82, used to do exercises with her foot on the kitchen counter and bend her arms toward her toes. I always kid Tom when I’m feeling joyful that I will jump up and click my heels together. That would be an incredible sight. Ha!
Your mom was pretty flexible and remarkable to be able to do that. I’m glad I get to have the chance to make good memories with my mom after I have been the major cause of heartache for her at one time and thankful that God has given me this time to make things right with her.
Clicking heels ala Gene Kelly? That would be an incredible sight indeed 🙂