Minnesota Sunflowers

In 2020, Minnesota farmers planted 77,000 acres of sunflowers. According to the National Sunflower Association, that number is just shy of the 80,000 acres Kansas, the Sunflower State, planted this year. With that said, two other Midwest neighbors have those stats beat. North Dakota planted 570,000 acres while South Dakota planted an astounding 620,000 acres. In fact, North Dakota is so proud of the land’s extensive fields of yellow flowers that the flower has been promoted for tourism. Now that is brilliant marketing in a time where social distancing is trending.

Currently, the glorious sunflower season is winding down. The key is to put a reminder on your calendar for next August but, in the meantime, purchase a bag of chocoate covered sunflower seeds for a snack.

Fish Sunflowers

This summer Minnesota Instagrammers flocked to the 11 Fish Sunflower fields. The cheery bright yellow flowers make for perfect pictures to brighten up any social media feed.

In August, my husband, two daughters, and I traveled to this free attraction in Andover location called Madie’s Bloom. What makes the Fish locations special are the props. For example, if you watch the videos on the Fish Sunflowers site you will notice pianos in almost all of the footage. We also discovered a cute bridge and a couple of purple blocks for visitors to stand and pose on.

Treasured Haven Farm’s Sunflower Field

If you’re looking for an authentic farm ambiance to experience sunflowers, Treasured Haven Farm is your place. We visited this farm in August 2019 and it does charge an entry per car and if you have a professional photographer with you there is an additional fee. But it’s worth it.

Train runners will appreciate the fact that there is an annual Veggie Run Half Marathon and Half-of-a-Half Marathon. While I can’t speak from experience, the area is so pretty I can only imagine it is a beautiful running route.