September’s Sweet Sunflowers

Is there anything more cheerful than a field of sunflowers? It’s like a thousand smiling faces quietly greeting you with their beauty. On my recent trip to South Dakota to visit my friend Rebecca and her family (more on that trip will be coming soon!), we drove past several beautiful sunflower fields on our journey west to the Black Hills, and ever since, I’ve been wanting to immerse myself in fields of golden sunflowers!

On Sunday the weather was perfect so Mom and I drove up to Kokomo to see Prices Pumpkin Patch’s sunflower fields while they were still in peak bloom. I’d been wanting to return there since our first visit to their pumpkin patch last October. We saw a few end-of-season sunflowers scattered across their fields then. I was afraid we might be a little late seeing them in all their glory this year, but we caught the sunflowers at the perfect time!

Prices opened for sunflower season August 10 this year, when the first round of sunflowers bloomed. At their farm you can pick out the sunflowers you want to take home for only $1 per stem and they will cut them fresh from the field for you. The owners are so friendly and willing to help you find the perfect flowers! I took home five flowers and my mom selected three. They are so huge compared to the sunflowers you see for sale in stores!

We were the only customers there on a late Sunday afternoon and enjoyed the quiet countryside. It felt so good to escape the city and get outside and enjoy nature! The butterflies and bees were flitting merrily about the sunflower fields as we oohed and ahhed and took photos. The Prices were out in the fields starting to harvest their pumpkins and kept bringing up small tractor loads of different varieties of pumpkins. I picked a small green pumpkin and bright orange pumpkin fresh off the vine to take home. The bright orange pumpkin matches the zinnias blooming in a container on my front porch. We’re definitely planning to return in October for more pumpkins to last through Halloween. We looked around the craft tent of fall decorations and I bought an antique yellow caddy for $3. Later when we needed a way to transport our sunflowers safely home, I realized I could use my new purchase to hold old water bottles I had in my trunk and put the sunflowers in them. So it’s already come in handy! I may decorate it with fall flowers; perhaps a sunflower motif would be particularly fitting.

Prices Pumpkin Patch is located at 3020 W. Jefferson St. in Kokomo, Indiana and open seven days a week from 10 AM – 7 PM during the fall season.  Before you go, check their Facebook page for the latest updates on sunflower and pumpkin availability, and any variations in dates and hours.  Payment is by cash or check only. Admission is free. Professional photographers’ fee is $20 – or purchase $20 in pumpkins or sunflowers.

If you’ve been looking for the perfect place to get your sunflower or pumpkin fix away from the madness of overrun city pumpkin patches, THIS IS IT! Five stars, highly recommend!