Sunflowers create moments of happiness
BELLA VISTA — Brent Smith thought some sunflowers outside of Riordan Hall would look sort of whimsical.
He planted some seeds, but nothing came up. Landscaping crews, who normally oversee the planting and weeding, thought the straggly buddings were weeds and pulled them, he said, laughing.
So, the next year, he planted seeds again and told the landscaping guys of his plans. This time, the seeds took root — and took off.
Now, in his fourth year of planting, the sunflowers have taken off again — like skyrockets.
Smith, who lives within the block, likes to keep an eye on them. He walks down the small hill and oversees their welfare.
The retiree from Iowa says it’s his wife who actually has a green thumb.
He doesn’t grow anything special throughout the rest of the year. He just thinks the sunflowers have their special place.
In recent weeks, the sunflowers have grown tremendously. The tallest towers around 10 feet, he believes.
Smith shared photos of the sunflowers around Father’s Day, when his two grandchildren came to visit. Now, those same sunflowers are double in size.
“I kind of watch them,” he said. “They’ve grown a lot.”
The Smiths moved to the village in 2015 from northcentral Iowa.
Smith hails from an electronic component distributor career, from which he retired after 15 years.
His wife, Kris, retired after a 38-year career with Monsanto.
The couple settled here, loving the area and experiencing much milder winters here than in Iowa.
The sunflower grower brings no previous planting experience with him. He simply thought it would be neat to see the sunflowers flourish for all to enjoy.
The beautiful array of flowers outside Riordan Hall receives water through an irrigation system, courtesy of the Bella Vista Village Property Owner Association, whose crews oversee the flower planting there.
“Sunflowers require more water,” he said. “I give them a drink of water about two to three times a week.”
From mid-April to right about now, the sunflowers seem to like their spot.
“They grow quickly. They do very, very well,” he said. “The soil has a lot to do with
Brent Smith, the sunflower grower, brings no previous planting experience with him. He simply thought it would be neat to see the sunflowers flourish for all to enjoy.
it.”
The soil there, he believes, is changing. The sunflowers take a lot to grow that tall.
“The nutrients are depleting. In past years, they have been taller.”
Smith doesn’t really want any publicity for growing the sunflowers. He has enjoyed anonymity — until now — because most people probably just assume the POA landscaping crew oversees the sunflowers, he said.
Be that as it may, people have enjoyed the large flowers this summer.
His wife’s recent social media post garnered numerous comments about his dedication to beautifying the community.
Several people have said they enjoy seeing the beautiful sunflowers that are huge, amazing and spread cheer.
“It makes me feel good,” he said. “It kind of warms your heart.”
Smith plans to keep growing the sunflowers as long as he can. It’s his little way of making Bella Vista Village a little bit better.
For those who move here from Kansas or other farming communities, the whimsical flowers remind them of something familiar.
“They think of home,” he said.