Thousands of blooming sunflowers will be showcased at Forks of the River Wildlife Management Area (FRWMA) during the sixth bi-annual Knoxville Sunflower Celebration Saturday, July 13, from 9 a.m. until noon.
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, which owns and manages FRWMA, plants multiple fields with sunflowers once every two years and invites visitors to learn more about land management and habitat restoration as they wander through a sea of yellow flowers.
Touring the celebration is easy! Visitors can take a free shuttle from Maynard Glenn Ballfields, 2100 McClung Ave. Shuttles will run continuously from 9 a.m. until noon. Limited parking is available at Ijams Nature Center and Ijams Quarry and a $5 fee applies. No parking will be permitted within the FRWMA during the celebration.
A great way to get to the fields is by joining the Cycology Bicycles guided bike ride leaving at 9 a.m. from Suttree Landing Park, 1001 Waterfront Drive SE.
Additionally, Kickstand Community Bike Shop will loan bikes to those who want to tour the sunflowers along the Will Skelton Greenway bordering the sunflower fields. Kickstand will be set up at the shuttle drop off area inside the FRWMA.
Guided walking tours of the sunflower fields are set for 9:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. leaving from the shuttle drop-off spot in the center of the fields.
Food trucks will be located at the Ijams Quarries and sunflower gifts will be available in the Ijams Nature Center Gift Shop.
Celebration goers are reminded to bring water and to wear comfortable walking shoes. They are also reminded that the weather determined how much and when the sunflowers will bloom.
The Knoxville Sunflower Celebration is presented by Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency, Legacy Parks Foundation, Visit Knoxville, Knoxville Parks and Recreation and Ijams Nature Center.
More information is available at legacyparks.org or by calling Legacy Parks Foundation at (865) 525-2585.
Fun Facts about Sunflowers
Here are some fun facts about sunflowers if you need something fun to promote the Sunflower Celebration this Saturday!
- Young sunflowers use heliotropism to track the movement of the sun across the sky, allowing them to maximize their exposure to sunlight
- Mature sunflowers face east which allows them to attract up to five times more pollinators because they warm up faster than westward facing plants
- Not all sunflowers are yellow! There are over 70 species of sunflowers that vary in size, color and appearance and range in shades of red, orange or even white
- The seed-like interior of the sunflower head is actually thousands of tiny flowers. And each petal on the circumference of a sunflower is a flower itself
- Sunflowers are native to the United States
- The tallest sunflower on record stood at 30 feet – most at the Forks of the River Wildlife Management Area grow to 6-8 feet.
Carol Evans is executive director of Legacy Parks Foundation