Sunflowers
After multiple attempts of growing sunflowers, I had success! The problem was the squirrels and forgetting to water them. I experimented with different varieties of sunflowers, really wanting the mammoth sunflower to grow like I have seen on the internet.
The process of watching a sunflower reminds me to practice mindfulness. Appreciating the full circle of seed to plant and back to seed again.
There wasn’t a flower that the bees didn’t visit. Each time they visited the flower, the bees pollinated the sunflowers so the sunflower can produce the seeds
Bees are attracted to sunflower because of their bright color and sweet nectar. When it lands, the bee brushes against the flower’s stigma, which is the reproductive organ. The pollen from the stamen (male organ) sticks to the bee’s body (as seen to the left). It moves from flower to flower, transferring the pollen allowing for the sunflowers to fertilize and produce seeds.
After a few weeks having nature work its course, all things come to an end. Once the sunflower starts to wilt, I went to collect the seeds before the birds found them. It was so satisfying to brush off the layers of work from the bees to find a treasure, more seeds!
