Tall yellow sunflowers as far as the eye can see cover four fields in the McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area in Poolesville.
On Wednesday, with temperatures finally below 90 or 100 degrees, nature lovers took time to slowly walk around the fields, checking out the flowers and butterflies.
The flowers are close to full bloom, and many admirers brought their phone cameras or large lenses to capture the beauty. Some even brought step ladders to enhance their views.
The management area is a 2,000-acre tract along River Road. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife and Heritage Service plants the sunflowers each spring primarily to provide food for mourning doves, songbirds, mammals and pollinators.
After the sunflowers are finished blooming and their seeds are mature, in early to mid-August, the area is mowed to scatter the seeds on the ground where they are more accessible to mourning doves and other wildlife.
Sunflowers are peaking at McKee-Beshers Management Area in Poolesville @mymcmedia pic.twitter.com/sJwM3iLI1d
— suzanne pollak (@SuzannePollak) July 18, 2024
