PKG | Sunflower field stops traffic in Chambersburg

An unusual crop in Chambersburg is causing people to literally stop and stare, just to take pictures. As WHAG’s Merris Badcock reports, a field of sunflower is bringing more than happiness to the local neighborhood.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - Just in time for the end of the summer, hundreds of thousands of sunflowers have begun blooming, and are turning heads.

"Everyday [my daughter and I] come out and we walk all around the field so we can see them from every direction, and just enjoy them,” said Karen Walker, a Chambersburg resident who lives close to the field of sunflowers.

“We take a lot of pictures. I think I have probably 1,000 pictures of them on my camera," she said, laughing.

Farmers at Lesher's Poultry Farm planted the sunflowers in order to turn them into birdseed, but for now, they're thrilled the sea of sunflowers is putting a smile on their neighbors’ faces.

"People would normally drive up and down that road and wouldn't think twice,” said Marsha Stein, who also lives nearby. “But now, they're really taking the time, and appreciating what [the farmer has] done."

The farmers even left part of their field unplanted so that people could pull over safely if they wanted to grab a picture. They say they are “amazed” at the attention the sunflower field has gotten.

“I drive a school bus, and every morning I get to drive past there, and it's just been really neat watching them bloom,” said Stein.

The farmers declined to be interviewed on camera for our story, but their message to all farmers was simple: if you open the doors of your farm, and invite your neighbors over for a learning experience, you'll have a better producing farm, and happier neighbors.

Happy neighbors, they say, who will appreciate the hard work that goes into making hundreds of thousands of sunflowers bloom.

Walker agrees the sunflowers have brightened up the neighborhood. “Everybody’s…first sentence is, '[The sunflowers] make me smile.'"

The farmers don't plan on turning the sunflowers into birdseed until the petals start to turn brown.

The sunflowers are located on the corner of Marion Road and Talhelm Road in Chambersburg, however, but remember to pull over safely and please, the farmers ask, don’t pick the flowers.

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