A visit to the sunflower fields has become a popular activity, especially during the pandemic.
It's out-of-doors, there’s room for social distancing, and the fields of golden blooms are both beautiful and inspiring.
Edwards Farm Store, located at 1574 Line 9 in Innisfil, is the grandfather of the sunflower fields. For over a decade, its fields of sunflowers have been stopping traffic, catching the eye of visitors and photographers – as well as providing the raw materials for Edwards Farm’s birdseed.
It's only in recent years that, recognizing the growing popularity, the farm has planted sunflowers as much for the visitors as for the birds. Paying $10 for “parking for the sunflowers,” visitors are invited to walk back into the fields and take photos posing against the blooms.
“This year, we did two staggered plantings,” says farm store manager Kathy Maclin. “The first batch is starting to droop now. The second batch should start blooming on the weekend, and should be perfect next week!”
Normally, the sunflowers remain in bloom for up to three weeks, but recent heavy rains have “played havoc” with flowering times, Maclin notes. “The weather is unpredictable.”
Even without the sunflower fields, there is plenty to see at the Edwards Farm Store. “We’re trying to expand everything all the time,” Maclin notes. “Our own beef, our own chicken, our own eggs – everything else is sourced locally.”
Shoppers can find local artisanal cheeses, hand-made soaps, sauces and preserves, housewares and crafts, as well as fresh vegetables and sweet corn, pet food, livestock feeds and, of course, bird feeders and birdseed.
“Our birdseed is our top seller,” Maclin says, noting that the sunflowers, once they finish flowering, will remain in the fields to be harvested in October.
The store is open Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed Sundays. The sunflower fields are open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays and holidays, until the end of August; admission is $10 per vehicle.
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