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Sunflowers rock!

I LOVE sunflowers! I planted some red ones that are blooming now. They just make me so happy. They bring birds too, so it's a win-win.

Sunflowers also remove lead and other heavy metals from the soils they are planted in. This ability of sunflowers has been used in many soil and water clean-up projects, from Chernobyl to post-Katrina New Orleans. So if you live on a busy car intersection, a hedge of sunflowers might help your health as well! AND, the sunflowers do not store the lead they absorbed in their seeds, so the seeds will still be safe for consumption, whether by you or by the birds who are very fond of them. It's probably not a good idea to eat sunflower greens, though :)

sunflowers have always terrified me! i think it's because when i was younger we had giant sunflowers in my father's garden...at night, when we were playing neighborhood games of hide-n-go-seek i remember them looming over my then smaller head and body and they seemed like giants! i've never been able to shake that image.

i never knew about their clean-air qualities, perhaps that is another reason to try my best to embrace them. : )

What street was this taken on? It looks like a place I used to pass on 10th avenue when I lived in WT. I went from DUMBO to Carroll Gardens to Windsor Terrace, where the apartments are huge and the gardens are fanstastic.

Is it too late to plant sunflowers? I just moved into a place with a yard and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and start gardening. If not sunflowers, what would be some good things to plant this time of year (in Washington DC)? I have a couple tomato plants and parsley I uprooted from my parents' garden, and I plan on planting lettuce once it gets cooler.