The 5 and DIME - Sunflower Trivia

I have a question for you but it is a bit detailed so stay with me please. If you have a patio area that overlooks a flower bed to the east of the patio, would you be wise to plant sunflowers in that bed to enjoy the beauty of the flowers while sitting outside?

Take a look at these pictures and see if you can find your answer.



A look at the flowers on the opposite side of the patio in the morning.

A look at the flowers from the patio in the morning.

Noticing these flowers while sitting on the patio at TAF I began to wonder why the heck they looked as though their backs were facing me. It was 4 o'clock in the afternoon and the sun had moved far to the west yet their faces were still pointing east. I had thought all flowers tracked the sun but I was mistaken - mostly.

After researching the topic I discovered they were "heliotropic" (help us QGG to understand that word would you please) for a short time during their growth. That is to say, they do track the sun UNTIL they become mature at which time the faces are locked east.

So, the next time you plant sunflowers be sure to keep this in mind if you desire to study the faces rather than the behinds of these beautiful plants.

A look at the sunflowers from the patio late in the afternoon.

A look at the sunflowers across from the patio late in the afternoon.

Hummm, so we have to move off the patio and head out into the yard to see the sunny, bright faces of these flowers regardless of the time of day. Who would have ever known this? Certainly not me, atleast until now.

The 5 and DIME - Our Afternoon Walk at TAF

Every afternoon at TAF we always take a walk in the woods so the poochies can stretch their legs, use the bathroom and scare up deer. It is usually a fun time for animals and humans except I have to admit the heat this summer has worn hard on us.

Here is a pix of Menard after having scared up his own deer without help from the others. Can you find him?




These are our scouts. The blonde one stays close to us humans and waits on us while the black guy hunts so far out that we rarely see him until we get home.

Here I ask you, "Where is Waldo? Oops or I should say Menardo? He is in this pix as well. Looking at this can make a human wonder whatelse is in the woods that we never see.
Along our numerous paths in the woods my sisters and I have marked or named different sites to help keep us on track of where we are going. It becomes rather difficult on some of our trails as they are easily mistaken with the myriad of deer trails that crisscross the mountainside. This site is what we call Water Bowl. I think it is apparent how it got its name.

Here is Upheavel, another landmark along one trail.

This is Calendar Tree. Whenever one of my sisters passes this tree she puts a stick in the bow of the trees.
We can never walk too far for too long while we are here on the farm but these short ventures offer us some respite. Come visit us and we will share our wonderful outdoors with you.