Foley Sunflower Field Draws Photographers, and a Safety Plea From the Grower

(KNSI) – The sunflowers blooming near the junction of Highways 23 and 25 outside Foley have turned into an unexpected roadside attraction, and the man growing them has one request for anyone who wants a picture; get off the highway first.

John Schafer owns J&J Grain in Foley and farms the roughly 300 acres of sunflowers on land he rents from Tom Henry. It’s the second year the crop has gone in near Foley. KNSI News sat down with Schafer on Thursday and asked if he expected the crop to be such a hit with the public. “No, I didn’t. I’d never grown them before, so I didn’t realize how beautiful they really are and people really enjoy seeing them.”

Jake Judd/KNSI News

What has come with them is traffic. Schafer said a field near Foreston last year drew crowds that stopped along Highway 23. Nobody was hurt and there were no crashes, but he said there was enough commotion that he wanted to get ahead of it this season.

“We just don’t want to have someone parked there and someone not paying attention, looking at the flowers, hits a car parked alongside the road that for no reason shouldn’t have been there. That’s the biggest thing,” Schafer said.

He pointed to a gravel side road, 73rd Street Northeast, off Highway 25 and a field entrance road near a tower as safe places to pull off and walk in. “Just be respectful of the property. It is a cash crop, all that, but we don’t want nothing for taking pictures or anything like that. Just be respectful of the landowners and just don’t cause an accident,” Schafer said.

Schafer’s son has been fielding calls from people asking about access. Anyone who wants to check in first can reach the family at 320-980-1730.

The window is closing. Schafer said the heads have already begun to tip downward, though the petals should hold their color unless a heavy rain knocks them off. The crop will be dried after Labor Day, with combines targeted for late September into the first week of October.

For anyone who missed it, the bloom typically runs from the end of July into the first week of August. Schafer said he hasn’t picked next year’s fields yet; that decision comes down to soil analysis and crop rotation, but he’s leaning toward the Oak Park area in 2027.

The flowers are a cash crop, grown for Tom Smude of Smude’s Sunflower Oil in Pierz, who crushes the seeds to produce cooking oil.

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