Field of Sunflowers Symbolizes Oakland County Commitment to Sustainability
(Oakland County, Aug 26, 2024)
Pontiac, MI – On the eastern outskirt of Oakland County’s government campus alongside Telegraph Road, lies a piece of paradise. Since 2021, Oakland County’s Facilities Management and Operations Department has planted and maintained a six-acre sunflower field, which had been an empty lot.
Instead of mowing and watering a grassy field, Chief of Landscape Services Mark Baldwin and his team create a self-reliant, sustainable garden. Each May, Baldwin picks a different sunflower species, and this year landscaping services spread about 1,200 pounds of black oil seeds.
“We’ve used different varieties every single year so you will get some carryover that grows from year to year. We don’t pick up the old seed heads, so everything that is here is returned to the soil,” Baldwin said
It’s easy to be captivated by the beauty of a sunflower, not to mention an area the size of roughly four football fields. But, these bright blooms work diligently to improve our environment by providing food and shelter for wildlife.
“Sunflowers make people happy and add food for pollinators and some of the native animals,” he said.
Sunflowers produce pollen and nectar and are an essential nutrient for pollinators like bees, dragonflies and butterflies. The plants’ seeds and leaves are a major food source for squirrels, birds and deer. And since this species of sunflower can grow four to six feet tall, the field is also a popular place for wild turkeys, deer and other animals to sleep and stay sheltered.
The sunflowers’ ability to thrive in various conditions makes them low maintenance. After the landscaping team spreads the seeds and adds fertilizer, the flowers only need rainwater and sunlight to become a golden oasis.
“We look at this as an opportunity to really showcase something that people would stop and look at, and it’s certainly been that,” Baldwin said.
