Ingalsbes enjoy watching their sunflowers grow
Photos courtesy Amy Ingalsbe
Amy and Reuben Ingalsbe have enjoyed watching their 2-acre field of sunflowers grow – and attract wildlife – near their Tecumseh-area home.
Reuben and Amy Ingalsbe planted a 2-acre field near their Tecumseh-area home in sunflowers this year, something Amy had wanted for a long time.
She said Reuben brush-hogged the field then used a ripper to break up the ground. Then he used a hand-spreader to scatter the contents of two big bags of black oil sunflower seed (“bird seed” purchased at Tractor Supply). He dragged over it after that, and since then, Amy said, “we’ve just waited and watched.”
They’ve enjoyed seeing the local wildlife discover the field. “The deer are already stripping many of the leaves. We may harvest just enough seeds for our bird feeders for the winter,” Amy said.
The sunflowers followed the sun each day, from east to west, she said, until they reached maturity. “Once the blooms open, they stay facing easterly, with the exception of just a few rogue flowers.”
She said Reuben told her he planted the sunflowers so she could take pictures of them. Amy, known for her photography skills, said, “I’m definitely getting our money’s worth out of them. We have a whopping $24 invested in this field.”
However, she said she suspects Reuben’s real reason for planting the sunflowers might have been “for the deer.”