Sunflower Trail

• These sunflower paddocks are on private property. Please respect our hardworking farmers and leave the site as you found it!
• DO NOT trespass; trespassing causes biosecurity risk and is also illegal.
• Unless directed by signage, do not enter a sunflower paddock or take flowers.
• Weather can potentially impact opening times; head over to our social media pages for weather updates.
• Suitable shoes are recommended. You will be walking around a paddock.
• Bring a hat and sunscreen!
• Park your vehicle safely in a location away from main roads and oncoming traffic. Vehicles can become bogged easily on black soil when it’s wet, so please ensure you are only driving and parking on gravel. Be aware of farm vehicles, trucks and heavy machinery using the roads.
• Take lots of photos and have a great time! If you’re sharing on social media, don’t forget to tag us!

Sunflowers are so called for the way the young plants turn to follow the sun as they grow. However when they mature and the flower bud opens, they will mainly face to the east. Native to North America, the common sunflower (Helianthus annuus) was introduced to Australia in the late 1800s. They’ve been grown on the Liverpool Plains for decades, with the area known as the “best sunflower growing area in Australia” in the late 1980s due to our black soil. Huge commercial crops produce millions of flowers, which are harvested for their seeds.

In Australia, sunflower crops are mostly used to produce bird, horse, poultry and dairy cattle feed. However certain varieties are also used by florists, to make oil and are harvested for consumption.

DID YOU KNOW…? 

Sunflower kernels are high in vitamin E, selenium, phenolic acids and flavonoids which function as antioxidants to protect your body’s cells against free radical damage. You can find sunflower kernel commonly used in breakfast cereals, bread and snack bars. 

For growers, sunflowers also bring benefits through diversity for pest, disease and weed management. A sunflower’s deep taproot can help to break up compacted layers of soil up to three metres below the surface, leaving the soil softer and more receptive to moisture. They are also valuable to include in mixed species cover crop plantings to improve soil structure and water infiltration deep into the soil profile.

Over the years, an informal sunflower trail developed from the volunteer efforts of Liverpool Plains farmers Ian Carter and Geoff Barwick, who have sown and grown sunflowers on their family farms for visitors and to raise money for local causes. Liverpool Plains Shire Council staff at the Willow Tree Visitor Information Centre began sending notifications out about viewing windows, and a following of dedicated sunflower-lovers developed. 

Further, local volunteer group Sunflowers on the Plains began coordinating a sunflower growing competition across the towns and villages of the Liverpool Plains and organising sunflower-related events over the summer. 

For the first time, the Sunflower Trail was formalised in January 2022 by The Plains Inc with the aims of encouraging more farms to open their gates to visitors and providing all sunflower-related information in the one place. For the inaugural event, over 5,000 visitors explored open sunflower crops or attended related events. 

This year, sunflower seeds were planted in October and November, 2024 to set flower over the summer.