Nearly forty years ago, David Dallam, the Co-Owner of Broom’s Bloom Dairy Farm and Ice Cream Shop,  received a free bag of sunflower seeds from a corn salesman.   Dallam then decided to plant the seeds as a surprise for his wife.

“I loved it, they’re so beautiful, and it just makes my whole August so much better. August is usually a really busy and stressful month; the sunflowers just make it very happy and cheerful.”  Mr. Dallam’s wife Kate, also co-owner of Broom’s Bloom Dairy Farm and Ice Cream Shop explained.

The sunflower field became a tradition at Broom’s Bloom Dairy Farm and Ice Cream Shop and it is 2013 and the tradition continues. The area in which the flowers are planted moves around Broom’s Bloom’s property each year.

Sunflowers are an annual plant, meaning they are grown outdoors in the spring or summer and survive for one growing season. They mature in about 100 days, and reach their peak in mid-August.

The field of sunflowers takes up about four acres this year at Broom’s Bloom, making it the most they have ever planted. Some flowers tower over the others, and later in the season, some even have multiple heads.

For the two weeks the sunflowers are at their peak, the shop is very busy. “The bright yellow just draws you in,” remarked customer Kristi Bowman “it’s very inviting; it brightens up my day whenever I drive by.”

The sunflowers will be combined and cut and dried in about two weeks. The seeds are given away for free at Broom’s Bloom to be used for bird seed.