Find DIYs, floral centerpieces and table inspiration using universally loved sunflowers.
Are you ready for the big event and solar eclipse today?
{source}
The path of totality (where the moon will completely block out the sun) is roughly 150 miles wide,
stretching about 2,500 miles in the U.S. from Texas to northeastern Maine,
and much wider than it was during the eclipse in 2017.
The 2024 eclipse path will also pass over more cities and densely populated areas
than the 2017 path did, with parts of 15 U.S. states within the path of totality.
This will make it easier for more people to see totality. . .provided it’s not cloudy! 🤞🌞
An estimated 31.6 million people live in the path of totality this year, compared to 12 million in 2017.
Depending on your location along the path, you might experience daylight transitioning
into dusk for a duration of four minutes and 28 seconds.
Since we’re following the sun and the path of the eclipse, either in person or living streaming,
I’m sharing some sun tracking by sunflowers!
As sunflowers grow, they track the sun’s movement in the sky from east to west.
This is caused by the growth pattern of the sunflower,
with one side of the stem elongating during the day,
followed by the other side elongating during the night.
The growth is driven by genes that respond to light and the plant’s circadian rhythm.
As the sunflower matures and growth slows as the flower opens up,
they stop their daylight tracking movement and face east.
You can find a more scientific explanation, here.
Here’s an interesting tidbit:
*Bee*cause east-facing flowers warm up quicker, they attract five times
as many pollinators as west-facing flowers! 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝
Sunflowers convey warmth and symbolize adoration, loyalty and longevity.
These cheery flowers are instant ‘mood-lifters’ and I can almost always find them at the grocery store
no matter what the season, for some welcome flower therapy!
I’m sharing a little sunflower love today from the archives . . .
Click on the links for the complete post and details,
if you’d like to track the sunflowers. 🌻
Dining with Sunflowers on the Dock
A farmhouse plaid tablecloth provides a colorful foundation for dockside dining with sunflowers
Bees, Sunflowers and Hydrangeas Arrangement +Tablescape
An embossed bee and honeycomb pot provides a vase for an arrangement
with sunflowers and hydrangeas and dining with bees.
Summer Lakeside Dining: Floral Arrangement and Tablescape with Sunflowers
Falling for Sunflowers + DIY Easy Flower Arranging Method
Find an easy flower arranging method, no flower arranging skills or floral foam required!
Lakeside Table with Sunflowers and Black and White Buffalo Check
Celebrating summer with black and white buffalo check and cheery sunflowers.
A Sunny Transition Flower Arrangement + Crowing with Delight
A DIY flower arrangement incorporating with fruit and veggies in a reproduction biscuit tin
Sunflowers and Apples Transitional Tablescape
DIY floral arrangement incorporating sunflowers with apples.
Celebrating with sunflowers on the porch and a ‘Fleur du Soleil’ watering can
Sunshine on a Stem & Buzzing with Bees
DIY fresh floral table runner centerpiece with an eco-friendly tool, chicken wire.
Post includes flower longevity tips and additional floral inspiration.
Woodland Friends Fall Table + DIY Floral Runner
DIY blooming table runner using fresh flowers.
Dress up your napkins with DIY Sunflower Napkin Rings,
a blooming addition to your table and easy craft project!
Cheery Sunflower Tablescape and Easy Flower Arranging Method
The Hum of Bees is the Voice of the Garden!
Chalking up a favorite garden quote on the door of The Potting Shed and bees buzzing around the garden
If you have plans for viewing the 2024 solar eclipse, follow the safety tips from Nasa
on how to view safely and protect your eyesight.
Are you travelling or have solar eclipse viewing plans today?
Thank you for your visit, sharing with:
Between Naps on the Porch
Share this:
Discover more from Home is Where the Boat Is
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
I loved all of your tablescapes. Maybe the first one on the dock is my favorite but I’m not sure. LOL I also like the information you gave about the sunflowers and the eclipse.
Good Monday morning, Mary. Your sunflowers may be all the sun we see today, but that’s okay because all these vignettes eclipse even this historic solar event IMO. 😉 We are in a 93% totality range, but cloud cover is bound to impede any viewing, and I’m totality okay with that. I was just hoping to see little crescent shadows on the ground.
Thank you for the flower and table therapy – the best!
Mary you are amazing, thank you for the beee- beautiful sun flower facts…. Happy solstice Dayy
Oh Mary, how do I love thee!? Your posts make me happy! Thank you for being sunshine on this day when we’ll experience temporary darkness! (Well, at least those in the path of totality)!
Hi Mary ~ such a beautiful and sunshiney way to tie in the eclipse to sunflowers! I pinned some pictures as inspiration bc my kitchen has black and white buffalo check and I love the way it looks with the sunflowers. Happy Eclipse Day ! Hugs, Dorinda
Beautiful tablescapes and flowers! Sunflowers are always cheery. All of the tables are gorgeous. We’ll try to see the eclipse today although we’re not in the totality path but we’re in the high 90’s of coverage. We’ll have some clouds to deal with. Happy Monday! Clara ❤️
This is such a happy post and beautiful too. I have to plant some sunflowers too.
I adore sunflowers Mary, they instantly bring happiness and brighten any space they’re in. Great post for this solar eclipse day! I can’t believe all the news and attention this day is getting! I have a friend who went with his whole family to Arkansas to see the eclipse, I can’t wait to hear what he says when he comes back.
Jenna
So interesting and beautiful, thank you Mary🌻
What a perfect post for today! Thanks for sharing.
Mary, Austin has been a buzz about the eclipse for months, years for some. They predicted a million visitors here for the event, parties hosted all across town. I opted to keep a low profile on this one. Declined the eclipse party watch, and will view from home if cloud cover doesn’t obstruct the view. It’s pretty gray this morning and a chance of rain. We need the rain, so I welcome that. Your sunnies are all so pretty and inspiring. Thank you for sharing. You have me thinking I need to post a little sunflower sunshine today. Thanks for always inspiring me.
Thank you for your information on how Sunflowers track. I have been wanting to plant my sunflowers in another location for this reason. I have an area behind my vegetable garden that is flat and grass. The grass turns brown in the late summer but has always greened back up with the Fall rains. Not this year. Most of it is dead. Wow! That has never happened here before. I’m not a lawn/grass fan anyway so I’m looking at this as an opportunity. I’m fortunate to have a tractor with a tiller attachment. The entire area will be tilled, amended and planted with all the trees, shrubs and plants that I’ve wanted over the years and never had a place for. I’m going to plant Eco-grass around the base of everything and I will have an area for those beautiful Sunflowers to not turn away and shine their faces in the right direction.
It was a pretty amazing experience to view the eclipse this afternoon, Mary!! I really was in awe! I also enjoyed your sunflower 🌻 post with all your pretty settings. They are such a happy, cheery flower. I hope you have a beautiful week!
Mary, I love sunflowers 🌻 We ordered our seeds in January and I am always anxious to get them planted! We ordered a couple of new varieties, so we will see how it goes. I sat outside all afternoon, it was a pleasant day with sun. We were about 80-85%. It looked just like the one in 2017 from our location. I loved all of your beautiful tables honoring the happy sunflower 🌻🌻🌻
So many great pictures and tablescapes! Yes, they do have such happy faces, making us smile. I think I’m going to try growing a few this year along with growing my pumpkins. Thank you Mary for the little push to help me decide to do it.
Hi Mary! Loving going down memory lane with your beautiful sunflower creations. Now I know why there are more bees 🐝on my flowers on the east side of the house! Happy Spring Mary!!!
Oh I just love all this info on sunflowers! And all your wonderful tablescapes and gardenscapes and pics are just wonderful. (Total eye candy!) Oh Mary, we had full 100% full totality eclipse here – and a rare cloudless blue sunny day of 74 degree weather. We had a big ole party and it was the most fun I have had in years. It was magical and a true blessing and I shall never EVER forget it. It really was that perfect.
Sunflowers are so cheery! Thank you for showing the many ways to highlight their beauty. I loved seeing them all. No eclipse in our area this time. We had an eclipse a few years ago and it was an interesting experience.
Lovely post! Like many here, I love sunflowers as well. So many beautiful settings and info. And I loved the sunflower napkins rings the first time you shared them and I love them again now. Thanks for the inspiration. XO- MaryJo
Wonderful post Mary and I enjoyed every bit of it. Lots of sun info tidbits and I love all the tablescapes with bees and sunflowers – you sure have a lot of bees on your sunflowers! Here is Calgary we had a 20% totality so it was essentially a non-event, but I did live stream along with NASA. I hope you had a wonderful eclipse day and happy Thursday!
That was so much fun, I spent hours in my greenhouse yesterday transplanting sunflowers to larger pots, you have really revved up my engines now! So much cuteness, loved your post 🙏
Mary, I’ve spent several days going back and enjoying all the sunflower posts. It’s been so much fun! Each one so different and I appreciate learning new things about sunflowers, eclipses and even bees! Beautiful posts!
The eclipse has come and gone. Missed whatever little we had this far south. Thanks for posting sunflowers and spreading sunshine. I love that watering can.