KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Grinter Farms shared Sunday that multiple open sunflower blooms had been cut early ahead of its busy Labor Day season.
Each year, Grinter Farms in Lawrence sees thousands of visitors for its vast display of sunflowers, which tend to bloom around Labor Day.
The Grinter Farms Facebook account shared a post Sunday — that's since garnered thousands of reactions — saying, “It’s very respectful to NOT CUT all the open blooms you can find. I was so disappointed when I went to look to see how many blooms popped since this morning and folks are walking out with armfuls of cut blooms. People are driving here to see the blooms in the field…not in your car as you drive away. Please exercise common courtesy.”
Grinter Farms lets people cut fully bloomed sunflowers, but they also encourage people to donate a dollar per flower if they’re able.
Seeing people cut flowers prematurely not only kills the flowers but also kills the experience, especially when people cut flowers so close to the front, accessible parts of the field, says co-owner Ted Grinter.
“You’re being a little selfish. I would like for you to let other people take pictures,” Grinter said. “It’d be nice if they’d hold off a bit until there were a whole bunch of blooms, but that’s part of it.”
Those blooms are set to come mid-week. By Friday and Saturday, Grinter expects the field to be packed with sunflowers and visitors.
He also says one of the best parts of his job running his family-owned business is its impact on others.
“I’ve been raising sunflowers for over 40 years, been raising ‘em for birdseed, still doing that,” Grinter said. “And this is a side benefit that people are coming out, making family memories.”
Tara Cochran can attest to that.
She’s been coming out with her daughter for the past seven years, taking photos for friends and family as a side hobby.
“I do preschool teaching, so people like me out here with the kids because we have fun, we’re silly,” Cochran said.
Something even preschoolers learn at an early age is patience.
“It’s horrible that people would mess with anything, especially in the beginning,” Cochran said about the flowers being cut early. “If you’re not giving back to them, especially at the very beginning, why mess with nature?”
Like the flowers that have bloomed early, they say there are only a few non-compassionate folks that stick out of a larger crowd of eager, respectful visitors.
All Grinter and Cochran are asking is for patience and compassion on behalf of the thousands looking to enjoy these flowers in the coming days.
“Give it a couple of days, and it’s going to be amazing,” Cochran said.
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