16 Sep Sunflowers Are One Of North Dakota’s Best Kept Treasures

Did you know that North Dakota is one of the largest producers of sunflowers in the entire United States? In the year 2012, North Dakota alone, produced over 1.4 billion pounds of sunflowers. An astonishing amount to say the least.

Photography was done by Jillian Batson, a local Minot Photographer.

Sunflowers create a beautiful backdrop for any type of photo-shoot. Please do not pick any of the sunflowers as that is the farmer’s livelihood. Make sure you are abiding by the regulations the sunflower farmers have set forth, as we would not want to destroy the beautiful fields or the opportunity to see the picturesque beauty.

Sunflowers are a delicacy and can be prepared in many different ways. A favorite of many people is sunflower pie, perfect for a fall evening, football game party, or Thanksgiving dinner. Sunflower seeds can also be derived from their oil, making sunflower oil, in which many people use for cooking, medicine, and beauty products. With a very versatile range of uses, sunflowers are a valuable crop to produce. 

Sunflowers show behavior described as heliotropism, defined as growth movements from plants induced by the sun. While the sunflowers are young blossoms they face East in the morning and follow the sun throughout the day. When the sunflowers mature they will begin to generally only face East. The world’s tallest sunflower being nearly 30-feet tall! 

At the peak of the growing season, which generally falls in August, the sunflowers are a sight to see. Minot has fields around the city that go for miles, get out and explore all the beauty. A field located just a mile north of the Hyatt House on the west side of the highway, you can see an abundance of sunflowers in just a quick drive.