A Closer Look at the Kansas State Flower: the Sunflower

Ah, Sunflower, weary of time, Who countest the steps of the Sun, Seeking after that sweet golden clime Where the traveler’s journey is done: Where the Youth pined away with desire, And the pale Virgin shrouded in snow Arise from their graves, and aspire Where my Sunflower wishes to go. — William Blake, English poet, Ah! Sun-flower

“Sunflowers do need a ton of sun. Don’t be stingy with the sunshine and put them in part shade. These are plants that appreciate all the rays they can get.” March 12, 1903 On this day, the Kansas State Flower was officially selected. Governor Willis Bailey signed the legislation that designated the wild native Sunflower…

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November 13, 2020 Frederick Lueders, Walter Bartlett, Howard Scott Gentry, Jane Powers, Candace Bushnell, Jeff Cox, P. Allen Smith’s Seasonal Recipes from the Garden, and the 1916 Chrysanthemum Show

20200101 The Daily Gardener Album Cover

Today we celebrate the German-American botanist who lost all of his botanical work in the Columbia River. We’ll also learn about the man who started the Bartlett Arboretum. We’ll remember the Agave expert who never wanted a desk job. And we’ll take a look back at an article about the relationship between royalty and the…

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