Dorchester’s Summer of Sunflowers 2023
Dorchester, the county town of Dorset, is being taken over by beautiful bright sunflowers this summer to raise money for Dorset County Hospital’s Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU).
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After the success of last year, Dorchester’s Summer of Sunflowers is back and bigger than ever! Visitors are invited to visit the town centre to see a sunflower extravaganza. From mid-July, beautiful sunflower sculptures will be suspended across South Street, planters will be full of the bright flowers, and the ground will be adorned with eco-friendly Sunflower paintings by a local artist.
Head around town to see spectacular sunflower-themed shop windows and stop for a bite in one of Dorchester’s eateries, which will be selling limited edition sunflower bakes. In each shop, Visitors will be able to donate to the project’s charities and a percentage of the profit from the limited-edition food will be collected too! The public can vote for their favourite shop windows and bakes through an online vote. And don’t forget to visit the Borough Gardens to see the beautiful sunflower varieties growing all summer long!
Dorchester Town Council are funding the town centre sunflower sculptures and organising the sunflower shop window display and bake competitions. They are hoping that the sunflowers will add a welcoming vibrancy to the town this summer and put smiles on the faces of visitors and locals alike.
Who are taking part in this year's competitions?
Dorchester Town Council will work closely with Hazel Hoskin, from Maiden Castle Farm, who is organising this year’s Dorset Sunflower Trail.
Some 750,000 sunflower seeds have been planted to create two spectacular trails for visitors from far and wide. As well as the stunning Sunflower Trail, visitors can also enjoy local ice creams, rest up at the café or bring a picnic and take home cut sunflowers or souvenirs from the Sunshine Shack. Half the proceeds of ticket sales will go to this year’s chosen charity, Dorset County Hospital’s Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU).
Hazel Hoskin said: “The uniqueness of this major fundraising event is that the Sunflower Trail is planted in a different field each year due to crop rotation. So if you’ve visited before then this years’ experience will be different again”.
Visitors to the Sunflower Trail at Maiden Castle Farm are encouraged to park in the town centre and follow the walking route out to the farm. See the route on google maps below.
You can start the route from the Town Pump on South Street or join the route from Dorchester South Train Station, Dorchester West Train Station or Fairfield Cark Park.
Online ticket booking for Dorset Sunflower Trail is recommended. Keep an eye on the Maiden Castle Farm website where you will be able to book from July.
