Sunflowers in Italy – Wow!

Sunflowers to me are a happy flower – they look like  little smiling faces surrounded by a ring of sunshine.  Being in Italy and having the opportunity to see fields of the
smiling faces,  I set my mission for the Sunflower Hunt.

Where:

Tuscany is known for their sunflower fields.  But don’t limit yourself to Tuscany, the sunflowers bloom in many areas of Italy, mostly the central region: Umbria, Le Marche, Lazio and yes, Tuscany.

When:

Seeing the sunflowers in bloom is highly dependent on the weather.  The bloom can start as early as mid-June through mid-August. Cooler and rainy weather during the Spring and Summer will delay the bloom.  During the super hot years, the flowers will bloom and die earlier.

In 2012, it was a very hot spring and summer.  I ventured out to the northeast area of Lazio in mid-July and it was apparent that many had already bloomed and were getting fried from the hot sun.  So I kept driving north & to a higher altitude where it wasn’t as hot and I did find a few fields.  In 2013, I had a vacation planned in mid September in Tuscany.  I knew the bloom would be finished, but it was a great sight  to see the huge drooping flowers in massive numbers.

This year 2014, it’s July 31st as I type…..the sunflowers are still in beautiful bloom since it’s been much cooler and very rainy this summer.

Click for larger photo

Tuscany Sunflower fields – mid September

Bees, bees, bees and more bees!

Not the best photo and it doesn’t represent the real-life vastness of the sunflowers – this looks like a field of daisies, but these are all sunflowers.  

Sadly, the season ends and the majestic sunflower hangs her head and rests.