ALPINE NATURE CENTER

Do Sunflowers follow the Sun?

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Do sunflower heads really follow the sun?

Picture
It's sunflower season! Have you been looking at them as you hike in Lambert Park? Are the flower heads facing the sun as it moves across the sky from east to west? In general, it appears to be so, but there are always a few independent sunflowers that face in the opposite or sideways directions. Why is that?

It turns out that only the immature flowers follow the sun. The stems have hormones called auxins that migrate from the one side of the stem to the other. The auxins seek the shade, and as they migrate to the west of the plant in the morning, the stem on the west side hardens and the flower head bends towards the east. Warm plants attract insects that pollinate, so it is in the plant's best interest to follow the sun.

As the plant matures and develops heavy seeds it ends up not following the sun and mainly facing east. Keep an eye on them this fall to see if this appears to be true. For more information, go to:
 https://www.scienceabc.com/nature/sunflowers-always-face-follow-sun.html

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  • Home
  • About
    • Volunteer
  • Wildlife
    • Birds >
      • Birds in the Wild >
        • Water Birds
        • Raptors
        • Other Birds
      • Alpine Bird Watchers
      • Aviary
      • Feed the Birds
      • Fat Robins in Spring
      • Two Doves
      • Who's That Knocking?
    • Mammals
    • Reptiles
    • Insects >
      • Insects Identification
      • Tarantula Time!
    • Living with Wildlife
    • Circle of Life
    • Deer Doo
  • Plants
    • Flowers >
      • Blue Flowers
      • Pink Flowers
      • Purple Flowers
      • Red Flowers
      • White Flowers
      • Yellow Flowers
      • Orange Flowers
    • Trees, Bushes and Brush >
      • Trees, Bushes and Brush ID
      • Acorn Bonanza
      • Box Elder Boys and Girls
      • Rabbit vs Sage
      • Juniper Differences
      • Mountain Mahogany
      • White Fir Trees
    • Grasses
    • Invasive Species
    • Fall Colors
    • It's A Mystery Plant
  • Open Spaces
    • Trails >
      • Trail Maps
      • Alpine Nature Hikes
      • Bonneville Shoreline Trail
      • Miles of Trails
      • Three Mines Trail
      • Water Tour
    • Alpine Mountains >
      • Mountain Panoramas
      • East Mountain Boulders
      • Penumbra
      • Glaciers, Lakes and Earthquakes
    • Stewardship >
      • Fire
      • Stewardship Projects
      • Winter Range Planting
      • Deer Guzzler
    • Arboretum
    • Uses
  • Activities
  • What's in Bloom
  • What's New!
  • Who Knew?
    • In Memory - Judy Bush
    • Invasion of the Box Elder Bugs!
    • Leaves Not Leaving
    • Running Waters
    • Missing in Action?
    • Sunflowers and the Sun
    • Cooper or Sharpie?
    • People
    • Who Knew? Archive - 2
    • Who Knew? Archive - 1