Maximilian sunflowers per se
And here’s a closer look at some of the Maximilian sunflowers, Helianthus maximiliani, that I found on October 3 at an undeveloped property on E. 51st St. at Overbrook Dr. in Austin. Cheery things, aren’t they?
For more information about Maximilian sunflowers you can visit the website of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and to see a state-clickable map of the many places where this species grows in the United States (and Canada) you can visit the USDA website.
© 2012 Steven Schwartzman
Portraits of Wildflowers 
Beautiful sunflower shot.
Alv A. Dahl
October 12, 2012 at 6:37 AM
Thanks you.
Steve Schwartzman
October 15, 2012 at 4:46 PM
Thank you for the sunshine on my snowy morning :).
photosfromtheloonybin
October 12, 2012 at 7:01 AM
You’re welcome for the sunny cheer. Yesterday here was cloudy but I spied some excellent stands of Maximilian sunflowers as I drove through the east side of town. The temperature was in the 80s, so the half inch of rain we had never turned into snow.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 7:10 AM
Tonight a killing frost, wish I were there!
Bonnie Michelle
October 12, 2012 at 7:10 AM
As they used to say in a television show: come on down!
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 7:11 AM
Soon enough, I actually will be there the first week of December! Hope to walk in some of your footsteps lol. My daughter and I plan a week of outdoor activities.
Bonnie Michelle
October 12, 2012 at 7:14 AM
Wunderschönes Foto, wo doch heute der Himmel grau ist und es regnet.
LG Mathilda ♥
einfachtilda
October 12, 2012 at 7:11 AM
Mathilda says that today the sky where she is is gray and it’s raining, so that makes three people in a row who appreciate this dose of flowers-as-sun.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 7:15 AM
In the process of trying to figure out whether this might be the sunflower that volunteered at my place (answer: no), I saw it referred to as a Michaelmas daisy. In fact, the lovely fall asters are more commonly known as Michaelmas daisies – named for The Feast of St. Michael on September 29.
This is a beautiful photo of a very nice sunflower – I like its clusters of blooms.
shoreacres
October 12, 2012 at 8:43 AM
I once knew but had forgotten that the Maximilian sunflower was called a Michaelmas daisy because it can be found flowering at the time of the Feast of St. Michael on September 29. Any time I find one of these sunflowers (or better yet a colony of them) is a feast for me.
As is usual in Austin, we still have some regular sunflowers doing their thing at the same time that the straighter, statelier Maximilians are at their peak. A third species of Helianthus is flowering here now, too, but I haven’t yet featured it in these pages. There’s just so much I can find the time to squeeze in.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 9:20 AM
Great photo! I recently learned that the flower of the Maximilian Sunflower can give off a chocolatey aroma. Did you happen to smell your flowers?
Mark Ostendorf
October 12, 2012 at 9:35 AM
Thanks. I haven’t ever noticed an aroma of chocolate, but I’ll sniff the next few Maximilians that I find and see if I detect anything.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 10:01 AM
Thanks for the bright sunny colours on my rainy day..:-)
coast72
October 12, 2012 at 9:57 AM
You’re welcome. I’ll occasionally have some more bright yellow from other sources in the days ahead.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 10:05 AM
Beautiful pic of one of my favorite native plants. Very easy to grow and a dependable bloomer.
petspeopleandlife
October 12, 2012 at 10:09 AM
Thanks for letting people know that this species is easy to grow, in case any readers are enticed to plant some.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 10:26 AM
It’s like a Van Gogh painting come to life!
forsythgalleries
October 12, 2012 at 11:07 AM
At the beginning of this year, just for fun, I posted a sunflower photograph of mine reworked in the style of Van Gogh.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 5:21 PM
Il pleut chez moi. Avec ta photo, j’ai l’impression d’avoir un soleil dans un ciel bleu. Merci.
🙂
lancoliebleue
October 12, 2012 at 11:29 AM
Le premier commentaire a parlé de neige, le deuxième de givre, et puis il y a eu un ciel gris en Allemagne. Chez toi il pleut. À vous toutes (il s’agit de femmes dans tous les cas) j’envoie volontiers ces soleils botaniques.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 5:29 PM
stunning.
sedge808
October 12, 2012 at 9:25 PM
They’re great wildflowers, no question.
Steve Schwartzman
October 12, 2012 at 10:01 PM
Another stunning photo…two of nature’s complementary colors at their best!
dhphotosite
October 13, 2012 at 2:46 PM
I’m with you: yellow and blue.
Steve Schwartzman
October 13, 2012 at 5:17 PM
I have this feeling as I look at this photo that the sunflowers are about to burst into song (or perhaps already have)!
Susan Scheid
October 13, 2012 at 4:42 PM
It’s one sort of song I’ve tuned in to, and sometimes have been able to record.
Steve Schwartzman
October 13, 2012 at 5:18 PM
Great shot Steve. I really like this. Polarizing filter?
Brian Comeau
October 16, 2012 at 5:49 PM
Thanks, Brian. Although I carry a polarizing filter in my camera bag, I haven’t used it in a long time (maybe years!). I find my lenses usually render a clear sky with enough saturation to suit me, and if not I can dial up some more in Photoshop to make the image look the way I remember experiencing the scene.
Steve Schwartzman
October 16, 2012 at 6:36 PM
Cool, just curious. I tend to be leaning that way myself. thx…
Brian Comeau
October 16, 2012 at 7:04 PM