Late summer into early fall is sunflower season. Outside my office window the birds spend this time of year feasting on sunflower seeds, not only from the feeders but also from the sunflowers that have grown from spilled seed.

Although I haven’t planted sunflowers in years in the vegetable garden, there is a forest of stalks topped with bright yellow disks in various stages of blooming and ripening. The honeybees are all over the just-opened ones looking for nectar and pollen to top off their stores before winter. The flowers that have finished blooming and are now full of seed are being stripped by the birds as fast as they can.

Most of us are familiar with the giant stalks with 2-foot-wide flowers, but sunflowers can be as short as 15 inches and everything in between. The grand champion at the Spokane Interstate Fair this year was about 15 feet tall, and the world champion grown in the East came in at over 25 feet. Besides the familiar yellow, the flowers come in shades of rust, gold, mahogany, white and combinations of all of these.

Sunflowers need lots of sun and reasonably good soil. They are somewhat drought-tolerant but benefit from a steady supply of water to reach full height. Some large stalks may need to be staked against the wind. Seeds are planted in the spring when the soil warms, while sprouts can be moved when they are young.

Sunflower bouquets are the hallmark of late summer, and the farmers markets have them in abundance now. Cutting your own flowers does take a little care and planning. Cut the flowers from well- watered plants as early in the day as possible and place them immediately in a bucket of water in the garden. Prepare your tall vases with fresh, cool water before arranging the flowers. Remove the flowers from the garden pail, trim the ends again and place them in the vase immediately. A good bouquet can last over a week.