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The biggest and prettiest floral display of love ever?

Field of sunflowers

Shutterstock | Nadya Vetrova

Cerith Gardiner - published on 07/31/23

A farmer marks his 50th wedding anniversary by producing over 1.2 million sunflowers for his wife.

Choosing the perfect anniversary gift for your spouse is never easy, but after 50 years of wedded bliss it can be even trickier.

However, one talented and romantic farmer in Pratt, Kansas, came up with the perfect way to share his love and devotion for his wife of nearly 50 years.

Lee Wilson decided to use his farming skills and knowledge of his wife’s favorite things to display his love for the world to see — at least for those traveling on Highway 54. Four miles east of Pratt, you can catch a glimpse of his handiwork.

As he explained to Kake:

Well we’re celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary August 10th and you know what’s a guy get his gal for the 50th? And I put a lot of thought into it and she always liked sunflowers. And I thought this is the year to plant sunflowers so I planted her 80 acres of sunflowers.”

Those 80 acres of sunflowers provided a staggering 1.2 million blooms, Wilson estimated. And if you’re wondering how the romantic farmer pulled it off without his wife knowing, he explained that he enlisted the help of his son back in March to help sow the seeds.

Incidentally, the symbolic gift for a golden wedding anniversary is normally gold or flowers. With these sunflowers Wilson has managed to combine both ideas with the huge golden hue they provide!

The couple, who started dating the minute Renee’s parents allowed her to at the age of 16, shared that it was “love at first sight,” and after 50 years of marriage they seem to be just as in love today.

Renee shared what she thought of the gigantic floral display of love:

“It made me feel very special. It couldn’t have been a more perfect anniversary gift than a field of sunflowers.”

And to top off the gift, one of the unintended bonuses of the sunflower crop is that many people have been able to share its beauty. People have traveled from all across the state to see the flowers that will stay in bloom for another week or two.

Tags:
Catholic LifestyleMarriageWeddings
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