Here are three sunflower fields near Wichita you can visit, take photos in this year

Jaime Green/The Wichita Eagle

It’s blooming time for sunflowers at Cedar Creek Farm in Maize where owners Kara and Aaron Smith have planted three color varieties for those who like taking selfies or family photos in a field of sunflowers

“This year we have an all-red, an all-white and an all-yellow field,” said Kara Smith. “The reds are on their way out but the white and yellow are going to be good” for a visit this weekend.

But don’t despair if you miss visiting soon.

The Smiths will have a second field blooming in October when they open their pumpkin patch. Those sunflowers will feature the Florenza sunflower variety, a bicolor variety described as having “bright russet-red flowers tipped in yellow” by one seed company. The Smiths may have another field of the more familiar yellow sunflowers, Kara Smith said.

Long associated as quintessentially Kansas, sunflower fields open to visitors have become a trend in the Wichita area in the past few years. Some farmers did so to capitalize on an agritourism trend and also cut down on trespassers looking for a social media-worthy photo.

Last year, as many as six farmers within an hour’s drive of Wichita planted fields and welcomed visitors. The Peterson Farm Brothers (the farmers who became a viral sensation with their song parodies) took a break this year from their “Sunflower Trails” operation because one of the brothers welcomed a baby to the family in fall 2021, but they expect to be back in 2023, according to a Facebook post. Klausmeyer Dairy Farm and Pumpkin Patch in Clearwater, which started opening their sunflower fields to visitors in 2020, had a limited run for its sunflowers this year, with the last blooms happening in late July.

Here are your remaining options for sunflower field visits. For a different spin on commemorating your sunflower field visit, the Kansas Maze operation in Buhler is offering paint nights where visitors can capture the flowers on canvas. See details below.

Because sunflowers, like other crops, depend on weather conditions, always check the farms’ Facebook pages, where owners post updates. The blooming times for sunflower fields tends to be 10-14 days.

Open now and again in early October

Cedar Creek Farm, 6100 N. 119th St. West. in Maize, off K-96. Fields are open daily from 5 p.m. to dark. Admission is $5 per person or $20 for a carload of up to 6 people. Cash and credit cards accepted. Another admission option is the $25 season pass for unlimited visits to the farm for both its sunflower fields and its pumpkin patch, which opens Sept. 24. For updates: facebook.com/cedarcreekfarmandpumpkins

Later in August into September

Kansas Maze at Gaeddert Farms, 13209 E. 82nd St. in Buhler. The 20-acre Kansas Maze operation has put together its Sunflower Festival for Aug. 20-Sept. 11 with two special events — a 5k and 1-mile run/walk Aug. 27 and a vintage/craft fair Sept. 3. Hours are 5-8 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays, and 2-8 p.m. weekends and Labor Day, Sept. 5. Special hours on Sept. 3 for the vintage/craft fair are 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; more than 50 vendors are expected to participate in the fair. Regular admission is $9, free for ages 3 and under; includes one free sunflower. Admission on Sept. 3 will be discounted $1. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate; cash and cards accepted. Sunflowers and decorative containers will be available for purchase. Several photo props are scattered throughout the field, like a vintage purple couch, a vintage yellow truck, benches, chairs, fences, frames and more, according to co-owner Tonya Martisko.

Kansas Maze has four evenings of painting classes with an instructor on-site scheduled for 6:30-8 p.m. Aug. 27, Aug. 28, Sept. 3 and Sept. 4. Cost is $25 per person and supplies are included.

Entry fees for the Aug. 27 event are $50 for the 5k and $40 for the 1-mile through Aug. 21, with a $5 increase on race day.

For updates: facebook.com/kansasmaze

Mid-September

Walters’ Farm, 10001 NW U.S. Highway 77 in Burns. Walters’ Farm has combined its Sunflower Days with the opening weekend of its pumpkin patch Sept. 17-18. They are also running a half-price special that weekend and free admission to anyone Sept. 17 only who has a button to El Dorado’s City of Gold Festival. Hours are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays; 1-7 p.m. Sundays. Admission prices vary by dates and times, with September weekends being $15, $13 for Wednesday-Friday and $10 for 3-7 p.m. Wednesdays; free for ages 2 and under. For updates: facebook.com/walterspumpkinpatch

Augusta Realtor Diana Burress said the lack of rain on the field her husband, Walter, planted with sunflowers on July 19 may prevent them from having sunflowers this year. Plans were for the field to be ready in September. The pair have generally opened their farm field for free. For updates: facebook.com/diana.burress.3/

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