Sunflowers make for superb sight

Murray Tyson with his crop of sunflowers.

A paddock of sunflowers on the Canterbury plains has proven quite the spectacle this summer.

Murray Tyson is a fourth generation farmer on his deer and arable farm in Springston.

Mr Tyson’s interest in growing sunflowers came from his late father who had bred birds and fed them sunflower seeds, when the cost of seeds started to become more and more expensive, he decided to grow them himself.

He first started growing them eight years ago and has grown them every second year since – this was now his fourth paddock of the flowers.

The paddock of sunflowers made a stunning sight and Mr Tyson said there were always people stopping to take photos.

“I think if I got $10 for every car that stopped and took a photo I would make a good profit off them.”

The sunflowers were conventionally drilled and didn’t require any pest management however, they were highly susceptible to damage from birds and wind, Mr Tyson said.

“Like a lot of crops the birds just get at them and take a lot … the wind can damage them badly, because the flowers have such heavy tops on them in a wind they can break.”

The sunflowers will be harvested in late March.