At this stage of the summer, there are fewer flowers around for me to photograph. So I’m grateful that the perennial sunflower, Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’, has done well this year.
In previous years this plant has struggled to survive. It would really prefer to be growing in a more fertile soil with a bit more moisture. Instead, it’s in a rather impoverished area that was close to where the roots of the neighbours’ conifers must have been.
Those huge trees were taken out a couple of years ago and the border on this side has been slowly recovering ever since. I thought the heat and drought of this summer would make the helianthus suffer badly, so I remembered to give it an occasional thorough watering. And I’ve been well rewarded with a healthy plant that’s just a little taller than me and covered in radiant yellow flowers.
The bees seem happy with the result too, and have been busily visiting the flowers. (That pleases me especially, because I want to keep up the supply of flowers for the bees and other pollinators for as long as possible in the year.)
Maybe next year I’ll try growing some of the bigger annual sunflowers too, if I can find the space. Talking of space, I’m waiting to see how far this sunflower will spread – some say that it can be invasive. But for now, I’m very happy to see these sunny little flowers brightening up my garden and feeding the bees.
Ann Mackay: Inspired by Nature 
That’s a really beautiful lemon colour. The flower and your photo of it are both equally beautiful! Thanks Ann for sharing the beauty.
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Thanks Liz! I love that lemon-yellow and have several other flowers of the same shade. It blends well with most of the other colours in the garden, so it’s really useful too. 🙂
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Is this a cultivar of Helianthus annuus? The color is delightful. It reminds me of lemon chiffon pie.
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It’s related but it’s a perennial sunflower. Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’ is also known as Helianthus ‘Limelight’ and Heliopsis helianthoides ‘Limelight’. (Had to look up the RHS site for that one – I had no idea that heliopsis was the same!) I grow it for the lovely colour. 🙂
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What a beautiful sunflower! Never seen one that looks quite like this – it looks almost like a daily. I would not mind having a plant like that in my yard, well maybe not the bee though.
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Lemon Queen…true to the name!! Lovely lemon yellow, Sue!
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I love the colour and have other flowers that are the same yellow sprinkled through the garden. 🙂
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Oops…Sorry…Ann!!🙄
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Hehe! Easily done! 🙂
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Such a lovely yellow.
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I love the lemony-ness of it – feels so fresh! 🙂
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What a joy it must be to see those lemony colours. I need some perennial sunflowers.
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I’m delighted with the colour – and the plant is easy to grow, it just needs enough moisture and some sun. 🙂
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Something as cheerful as this would be nice if it did spread a little.
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The flowers are really helping to keep the garden going, so they’re earning their space!
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Our flowers are on the wane now too, Ann. But we do have some late summer bloomers yet to flourish. Your Lemon Queen is a lovely shade of yellow. And it is always nice to see a pollinator at work.
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I’ve tried to have that shade of yellow through the garden and at different times of year – it goes well with lots of other colours.
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Beautifully photograph flower. Thanks for sharing it with us.
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Thanks Geri! I’m glad you enjoyed seeing it. 🙂
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