4 days ago
8 Places To See Sunflowers Bloom In The South This Summer
Sweltering heat aside, there is plenty to love about summertime in the South. The season is prime time for ice cream runs, lazy beach days, and wandering through fields of sunflowers in full, golden bloom. These towering flowers hit their peak during the hottest months, transforming farms, backroads, and tucked-away pastures into bright, cheerful memories. Spring gets most of the credit for its dogwoods and azaleas, and fall claims the foliage, but summer quietly delivers one of the region's most beautiful displays. It's the kind of fleeting ritual that might just earn a spot on your annual calendar. Here are eight places across the South where you can see—and even take home—these sun-kissed flowers.
Anderson, South Carolina
This fourth-generation family farm turns peak bloom into a full-blown celebration. Its annual Sunflower Festival invites guests to roam through fields of golden blossoms—including rare varieties you won't often see—then stay for the live music, local food vendors, and more than 30 classic farm attractions, from a cow train to a giant jumping pillow. The experience is complete with photo ops around every corner and pick-your-own blooms included with admission.
1515 Denver Rd, Anderson, SC 29625; 864-556-3394
Explore Anderson
Nokesville, Virginia
Each summer, just 40 miles west of Washington, D.C., this family-owned farm trades its famous tulips for towering sunflowers in more than 30 vibrant varieties. The 70-acre fields stretch wide with blooms in every shade—bright yellow, deep orange, rusty red, and even buttery white. Guests can wander through three winding sunflower mazes, settle in for a picnic in the courtyard of a century-old dairy barn, or linger for golden-hour views during the farm's Sunflower Sunsets, held each evening from 4 p.m. to dusk. Pick-your-own stems are $1.50 apiece, with three included in every ticket.
11008 Kettle Run Rd, Nokesville, VA 20181; 703-930-3052
West, Texas
You know summer has arrived when this family-owned farm, just a short 10-minute drive north of Waco, bursts into bloom with 5 acres of sunflowers and zinnias. The farm's annual Sunflower Festival runs from mid-May through early June, inviting visitors to wander the fields, craft their own floral arrangements, and enjoy live music alongside classic farm activities like barrel train rides and duck races. Even after the festival ends, the farm stays open on select days for flower picking well into June.
7929 Heritage Pkwy, West, TX 76691; 254-447-7422
Autaugaville, Alabama
In the heart of central Alabama, Kim and Todd Sheridan plant roughly a million of what they call 'happy flowers' each year. This sought-after summer spectacle comes to life around early July, inviting visitors to explore the fields on foot or overlook the sea of blooms with a tractor-pulled wagon ride. Admission to the smile-making fields is free, with cut flowers available for $1 a stem or $12 a bucket.
3301 Hwy 14 West, Autaugaville, AL 36003
Picayune, Mississippi
Guests who visit this ever-changing flower farm in southern Mississippi leave with some of the prettiest buckets in the state. During the spring and summer season, typically from May to June, the fields spill over with towering sunflowers, bright zinnias, and scattered bursts of cosmos and marigolds. For $18 per person (ages 12 and up), you bring your own bucket and clippers and craft your own colorful bounty.
27230 Rd 221, Picayune, MS 39466; 601-918-3770
Shreveport to Gilliam, Louisiana
The next best thing to a yellow-brick road, this stretch of sunflowers along Highway 3049 North from Shreveport to Gilliam creates one of the most scenic drives in Louisiana. You'll pass everything from quaint local patches to expansive fields that stretch for miles alongside the road. Keep driving until you reach Gilliam, where the town hosts its annual Sunflower Festival. Enjoy everything from live music and food vendors to photo ops and vintage tractors.
Explore Shreveport
Flintsone, Maryland
Surrounded by mountains and tucked along Pleasant Valley Road, the sunflower field at Rocky Gap State Park offers a quiet and uniquely beautiful kind of bliss. The blooms typically peak in late summer, when bright-yellow sunflowers mingle with bursts of purple, orange, and pink wildflowers. While picking isn't allowed, the scenery makes for some of the most striking photo ops in western Maryland.
12500 Pleasant Valley Road, Flintstone, MD 21530; 301-722-1480
Philadelphia, Tennessee
You can easily spend several hours soaking in the magic of this mid-summer display in Loudon County. From late June through mid-July, visitors can stroll through fields of sunflowers and zinnias, take scenic tractor-pulled hayrides, and make their way through a winding sunflower maze. Admission starts at $8 for adults and $5 for children aged 4–9, with extras like u-pick flowers and souvenir French Market buckets available on-site.
13100 Lee Hwy, Philadelphia, TN 37846; 865-408-8527
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