Stephen Shaw stands in the midst of his sunflower wall on Oliver Way (Susan McNeil/paNOW)

By Susan McNeil

Sunflowers

A sunflowery day on Oliver Way

Jul 30, 2022 | 12:00 PM

If by chance a person were to walk or drive down Oliver Way near St. Francis School, a certain front yard will stand out amongst the rest.

That yard, belonging to Stephen Shaw, has a unique fence on one side, made entirely of about eight varieties of sunflower and the result of a gardening accident last year.

“What inspired me to grow sunflowers this year was last year; I had a couple of random sunflowers pop up. Probably just from birdseed,” Shaw said.

One new neighbour, a seven-year-old boy, took an interest in the accidental sunflowers and would come over to watch the flowers grow and develop until it was time to dry the seeds out, roast them and eat them.

“We had a great little snack, but it was such a fun experience doing that last year and such a beautiful flower that I thought, well let’s try to do it deliberately this year,” he said.

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He liked them and decided this year he would plant a row down the entire length of his yard on a south-facing side.

Shaw started by going to the store and buying one of every variety of packages he saw and starting the seeds indoors in mid to late April.

That day he bought eight packages but now knows there are over 70 varieties of sunflower.

Shaw put all the seed packages on display so passersby know exactly what is planted. (Susan McNeil/paNOW)

After a week of indoor growing, the seedlings were transplanted outside and placed under a dome every night to stop any frost from killing them.

The sunflowers join an eclectic collection of wildflowers and other happenstance plants.

Shaw has lived for 20 years in the only home he’s ever owned and, in that time, has changed the yard from a ‘very manicured’ look to one that embraces wildflowers, the odd thistle and now, sunflowers.

“Over the years I have been more and more getting rid of lawn and introducing more wildflower beds especially to promote pollinations,” Shaw said of his changed yard.

When he first bought the place, he had never gardened before and is still learning by trial and error.

“For me, gardening is just one big experiment. That’s part of the fun of it for me is just trying out new things. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t,” Shaw said.

The street has a lot of cyclers and walkers and he has met quite a few that stop to admire the wall of flowers.

He plans to re-grow the wall next year in the same location but after that may look for a new home as the soil will likely be depleted of needed nutrients.

Shaw spends about two hours every day in his garden, using it as a source of physical activity and a way to enjoy the short growing season as much as possible.

At times, Shaw is assisted by his 13-year-old dog, Phoebe, with whom he has an agreement; Shaw provides her with care and she helps with the landscaping.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com