There are a lot of lessons that we can learn from nature and gardening as shown by the following sunflower quotes. 

Sunflowers are one of the most recognizable flowers. They have large brown centers and deep golden petals all around.

But the thing that makes them the easiest to recognize is that they can grow over six feet tall.

The large size of these flowers paired with the beautiful yellow petals makes them exquisite to look at if you happen to see a field of them. 

What makes sunflowers special?

Another thing that makes these flowers special is that they follow the sun throughout the day. They turn their heads to soak in the sunshine.

These unique flowers are not only pleasing to the eye, but they can teach us some important lessons about life. 

Below is our collection of inspirational, wise, and thought-provoking sunflower quotes, sayings, and proverbs, collected from a variety of sources over the years.

Don’t forget to also check out these blooming flower quotes that will make you appreciate the beauty around you.

Sunflower quotes about pushing through hard times

1. “Sunflowers end up facing the sun, but they go through a lot of dirt to find their way there.” ― J.R. Rim

2. “Turn your face to the sun, and shadows follow behind you.” – Maori Proverb

3. “Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow. It’s what sunflowers do.” – Helen Keller

4. “We’re all golden sunflowers inside.” – Allen Ginsberg

Inspirational sunflower quotes

5. “Wherever life plants you, bloom with grace.” – Old French Proverb

6. “True friends are like bright sunflowers that never fade away, even over distance and time.” – Marie Williams Johnstone

7. “I want to be like a sunflower so that even on the darkest days I will stand tall and find the sunlight.” – Unknown

8. “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant.” – Robert Louis Stevensen

9. “If roses tried to be sunflowers, they would lose their beauty; and if sunflowers tried to be roses, they would lose their strength.” ― Matshona Dhliwayo

10. “Every friend is to the other a sun, and a sunflower also. He attracts and follows.” – Jean Paul

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of garden quotes about the power of nature.

11. “As for marigolds, poppies, hollyhocks, and valorous sunflowers, we shall never have a garden without them, both for their own sake, and for the sake of old-fashioned folks, who used to love them.” – Henry Ward Beecher

Thought-provoking sunflower quotes

12. “The head of all flower heads is one flower; the sunflower in the sky, that gives the others vivid color stemming from the inside.” ― Curtis Tyrone Jones

13. “The sunflower is a favorite emblem of constancy.” – Thomas Bulfinch

14. “Flowers have an expression of countenance as much as men and animals. Some seem to smile; some have a sad expression; some are pensive and diffident; others again are plain, honest and upright, like the broad-faced sunflower and the hollyhock.” ― Henry Ward Beecher

15. “Never look directly at the sun, instead look at the sunflower.” – Vera Nazarian

16. “A sunflower poem: The lofty follower of the sun, Sad when he sets, shuts up her yellow leaves, Drooping all night; and when he warm returns. Points her enamor’d bosom to his ray.” – James Thomson

17. “Which makes it ironic my favorite flower isn’t even indigenous to the British Isles, let alone Yorkshire. I don’t think there’s anything on this planet that more trumpets life than the sunflower.” – Tim Firth

Also, check out these yellow quotes for a happy aesthetic.

Beautiful sunflower quotes

18. “And the yellow sunflower by the brook, in autumn beauty stood.” – William Cullen Bryant

19. “The road to freedom is bordered with sunflowers.” – Martin Firrell

20. “All flowers are beautiful in their own way, and that’s like women too.” – Miranda Kerr

21. “A sunflower field is like a sky with a thousand suns.” – Corina Abdulahm-Negura

22. “Does she realize she looks like a sunflower, ready to rain sunlight on all who look down upon her?” – Simone Elkeles

23. “Light-enchanted sunflower, thou Who gazest ever true and tender On the sun’s revolving splendour.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

Sunflower quotes to brighten your day

24. “I am working with the enthusiasm of a man from Marseilles eating bouillabaisse, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to you because I am busy painting huge sunflowers.” – Vincent Van Gogh

25. “Fame is the scentless sunflower, with gaudy crown of gold; But friendship is the breathing rose, with sweets in every fold.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes

26. “Her smile put the sunflower to shame.” – Jerry Spinelli

Don’t forget to also check out these farmer quotes that will make you love the land.

27. “If I were a flower… I would be a sunflower. To always follow the sun, turn my back to darkness, stand proud, tall and straight even with my head full of seeds.” – Pam Stewart

28. “Bring me then the plant that points to those bright Lucidites swirling up from the earth, and life itself exhaling that central breath! Bring me the sunflower crazed with the love of light.” – Eugenio Montale

29. “And here the sunflower of the spring burns bright in the morning’s beam.” – Ebenezer Elliott

30. “In the morning the sunflower blossoms due to the sun’s rays. This morning I just wanted to remind you that my heart blossoms with love for you every day I wake up and it is going to do that forever.” – Sheila Carey

Sunflower quotes to brighten your life

31. “Be like a flower and turn your face to the sun.” – Kahlil Gibran

32. “Space for the sunflower, bright with yellow glow, To court the sky.” – Unknown

33. “Despite knowing they won’t be here for long, they still choose to live their brightest lives — sunflowers.” – Rupi Kaur

34. “Sunflowers are like people to me.” – Joan Mitchell

35. “The sunflower is mine, in a way.” – Vincent Van Gogh

36. “A rose can never be a sunflower, and a sunflower can never be a rose. All flowers are beautiful in their own way, and that’s like woman too.” – Unknown

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of rose quotes that celebrate the beautiful flower

37. “Like a single sunbeam on a warm summer day, there is an exuberance and brilliance in a sunflower.” – Unknown

38. “Mom has a massive sunflower for a soul so big there’s hardly any room in her for organs.” ―Jandy Nelson

39. “Which way will the sunflower turn surrounded by millions of suns?” –
Allen Ginsberg

40. “Big doesn’t necessarily mean better. Sunflowers aren’t better than violets.” – Edna Ferber

Sunflower quotes that will make your day

41. “Make it like a sunflower.” – Steve Jobs

42. “My will broke at the sound of his voice, and my head turned with as much inevitability as a sunflower turning its face to the sun.” – Patricia Briggs

43. “…we’re all beautiful golden sunflowers inside, we’re all blessed by our own seed & golden hairy naked accomplishment.” – Allen Ginsberg

44. “Ah Sunflower, weary of time / Who countest the steps of the sun; / Seeking after that sweet golden clime / Where the traveller’s journey is done.” – William Blake

45. “Attention shifted to him like sunflowers turning to the sun.” – Khaled Hosseini

46. “Sunflowers in spring, they’re just like you / Sunflower wipe away your tears / All your doubts and fears / You were born to fly, so high.”–Alice Peacock

If you’re enjoying these quotes, read our collection of spring quotes, celebrating the new season.

47. “The earth paints a portrait of the sun at dawn with sunflowers in bloom. Unhappy with the portrait, she erases it and paints it again and again.” – Rabindranath Tagore

48. “A long time ago in a kingdom by the sea there lived a princess as tall and bright as a sunflower.”–Jeanne Desy

49. “I chose a sunflower because when darkness descends they close up to regenerate. But I really wish I’d never had the tattoo in the first place. Clean, clear skin is always better.” – Halle Berry

50. “Yellow is my favorite summer color – it makes me feel like a sunflower.”–Bria Vinaite

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to check out our collection of summer quotes to celebrate the season of outdoor exploration and fun.

Sunflower quotes to spread happiness

51. “The morning glories and the sunflowers turn naturally toward the light, but we have to be taught, it seems.” – Richard Rohr

52. “My work is the world. Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird – equal seekers of sweetness. Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.” – Mary Oliver

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of blue quotes about the power of colors.

53. “I want to encourage women to embrace their own uniqueness. Because just like a rose is beautiful, so is a sunflower, so is a peony. I mean, all flowers are beautiful in their own way, and that’s like women too.” – Miranda Kerr

54. “Wherever the sun goes / The sunflower will follow / Through all of the pain / And all of the sorrow.” – Londrelle

55. “Restless sunflower; cease to move.” – Pedro Calderon de la Barca

56. “Smile to the world and smile to the people you love, as a sunflower smiles at the sun.”– Remez Sasson

57. “I am painting with the same enthusiasm as a Marseillaise eats bouillabaisse … I am painting big sunflowers.” – Vincent Van Gogh

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of painting quotes about the power of creating with color.

58. “Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.” – James Matthew Barrie

59. “There are not too many fables about man’s misuse of sunflower seeds.” – Richard Brautigan

60. “Look at the sunny side of everything.”– Christian D. Larsen

Sunflower quotes to freshen your day

61. “So, I’m off to the market to buy a few sunflowers to place in a vase on my kitchen table. Have a beautiful day!”— Olivia Dunn

62. “Always look at the brighter side of life, just like the sunflower, which looks upon the sun, not the dark clouds.” – Unknown

63. “I faced the gaudy sunflower on her canvas bag — it looked hand-painted, and at last, my eyes fell into hers. I said, ”Thanks for the card.” Her smile put the sunflower to shame. She walked off.” – Jerry Spinelli

64. “The flower that follows the sun does so even in cloudy days.”– Robert Leighton

65. “Stand tall and face the sun.” – Unknown

66. “Don’t wait for someone to bring you flowers. Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul.”– Luther Burbank

67. “Let a hundred flowers bloom.” – Mao Zedong

68. “Open the bloom of your heart and become a gift of beauty to the world.”– Bryant McGill

69. “Every flower blooms at a different pace.” – Suzy Kassem

70. “A flower does not use words to announce its arrival to the world; it justs blooms.”– Matshona Dhliwayo

You might also like these color red quotes that express passion.

Motivational sunflower quotes

71. “As for marigolds, poppies, hollyhocks, and valorous sunflowers, we shall never have a garden without them, both for their own sake and for the sake of old-fashioned folks, who used to love them.” – Henry Ward Beecher

72. “Every flower must grow through dirt.”– Laurie Jean Sennott

73. “What a lonely place it would be to have a world without a wildflower.” – Roland R. Kemler

74. “Like wildflowers; You must allow yourself to grow in all the places people thought you never would.”– E.V.

75. “Let us dance in the sun, wearing wildflowers in our hair.” – Susan Polis Schutz

If you’re enjoying these quotes, read our collection of dance quotes to help you find the perfect words about movement.

76. “Don’t let the tall weeds cast a shadow on the beautiful flowers in your garden.”– Steve Maraboli

77. “You look beautiful as a sunflower and charming as a rose.” – Avijeet Das

78. “A flower blooming in the desert proves to the world that adversity, no matter how great, can be overcome.”– Matshona Dhliwayo

79. “Tomorrow it may rain, so I’ll follow the sun.” – The Beatles

80. “If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.”– Frances Hodgson Burnett

More sunflower quotes

81. “She is a sunflower! She brings hope to people.” – Avijeet Das

82. “A sunflower teaches us so much about love.” – Samrah Ahmad

83. “Then one by one they raised their faces to the sky. ‘Like a field of sunflowers.” – Fiona Valpy

84. “I think it’s something to do with the nurturing side of the psyche; tying up a sunflower or whatever and helping it grow, it is just some kind of core human experience.” – Joe Lycett

85. “I can’t feel bad about being who I am, just like the girl next to me can’t feel bad about being who she is. Because a rose can never be a sunflower, and a sunflower can never be a rose.” – Miranda Kerr

86. “I remember my first role as a sunflower at nine.” – Kay Kay Menon

87. “Pick up a sunflower and count the florets running into its centre, or count the spiral scales of a pine cone or a pineapple, running from its bottom up its sides to the top, and you will find an extraordinary truth: recurring numbers, ratios and proportions.” – Charles Jencks

If you’re enjoying these quotes, you’ll love our collection of pineapple quotes to hail the queen of tropical fruits.

88. “Be a Sunflower in a field of roses.” – T.F. Fox

89. “Sunflowers show us the beauty of staying connected with all that nourishes and sustains us.” – Unknown

90. “Despite knowing they won’t be here for long they still choose to live their brightest lives… Sunflowers.” – Rupi Kaur

91. “I love you more than all the bees in a Sunflower field.” – H.C.

92. “She may be a rose dipped in gold, be he prefers Sunflowers.” – Katrina Nutter

Sunflower Quotes to Make You Smile

93. “Who knows what may lie around the next corner? There may be a window somewhere ahead. It may look out on a field of sunflowers.” – Joe Hill

94. “Every flower blooms in its own time.” – Ken Petti

95. “He that will enjoy the brightness of sunshine, must quit the coolness of the shade.” – Samuel Johnson

96. “Even the tiniest of flowers can have the toughest roots.” – Shannon Mullen

97. “Many eyes go through the meadow, but few see the flowers in it.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

98. “Spring: A lovely reminder of how beautiful change can truly be.” – Unknown

99. “Be honest, be nice, be a flower not a weed.” – Aaron Neville

100. “I am in awe of flowers. Not because of their colors, but because even though they have dirt in their roots, they still grow. They still bloom.” – D. Antoinette Foy

101. “Happiness held is the seed; happiness shared is the flower.” – John Harrigan

102. “I always like to have flowers on the table. I think they make it look special.” – Ina Garten

103. “There are always flowers for those who want to see them.” – Henri Matisse

Sunflower quotes to inspire your day

104. “I will admit you are the finest if not the loveliest rose in the garden. But you see, my dear, I was looking for a sunflower.”  – Richelle E. Goodrich

105. “And to this day I love endless landscapes, big horizons, sunflowers, and narcissi.” – Gisela Hausmann

106. “Sunflowers know the secret of life is to follow the sun.”  – Clifford Thurlow

107. “If all your dreams have broken and gone, if you feel isolated in your own private world, go out this minute and buy a sunflower.” – Clifford Thurlow

108. “…so far, the sunflowers blended into one another, creating a solid carpet of golden yellow.Somewhere out there was my future.”  – Tanya Guerrero

109. “look at its shape, with vibrant yellows and oranges, a sunflower can brighten your day…it’s as if it is smiling like a happy face painted on the sun.”  – Bodhi Smith

110. “You are touching so many people’s lives. You are a Sunflower.”  – Avijeet Das 

111. “Some of us believe that when it is dark and the Sun is hiding, the sunflowers turn to each other, and energize and strengthen each other. This faith is beautiful.”  – Neena Verma

112. “Many flowers open to the sun, but only one follows him constantly. Heart, be thou the sunflower, not only open to receive God’s blessing, but constant in looking to Him.” – Jean Paul

113. “Let the sunflowers of thy soul bloomin the sunshine.”  – Lailah Gifty Akita

Sunflower quotes about sunflower seeds

114. “For lunch, it’s usually a salad with sunflower seeds, cucumbers, celery, and a lot of vegetables.” — JaVale McGee

115. “Growing up in Texas, I am a sunflower seeds and Dr. Pepper guy. If I have that, I’m pretty much good to go on any road trip, anywhere.” — Chris Harrison

116. “I kick off my metabolism with a glass of O.J. and a pretty big smoothie. I put in chia seeds, flax seeds, raw organic honey, fresh spinach, hemp seeds, avocado, matcha, spirulina, raw almond butter, almond milk, berries, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds.” — Andreja Pejic

117. “Jesus was not this wimpy little guy who walked around munching sunflower seeds and saying nice things to people. The real Jesus of the Bible said, ‘Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.’ That is: Obey the government.” — Robert Jeffress

118. “As a rule I start the day with a delicious health cocktail which includes soya protein powder, porridge oats, water, vitamin C, sunflower seeds and honey, plus Dr Udo’s Ultimate Oil Blend for all the essential fatty acids your body needs.” — Lisa Stansfield

Additional sunflower quotes for flower lovers

119. “Sunflowers never lie.” – Emily Byrnes

120. “Sunflowers and seashells and logarithmic spirals…” – Keri Hulme

121. “Sunflower-bordered roads always seem to me the roads to freedom.” – Willa Cather

122. “Sunflowers are like people to me.” – Joni Mitchell

123. “They’re in bloom because they’ve found where they belong.” – Mark Sippings

124. “In a crowd of roses, choose to be a sunflower. Thornless. Unwithering. Abundant in seeds.” – Jatawny M. Chatmon

125. “A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love.” – Max Muller

126. “If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness.” – Therese of Lisieux

127. “Flowers don’t tell, they show.” – Stephan Skeem

128. “Where flowers bloom so does hope.” – Lady Bird Johnson

Happy sunflower quotes

129. “Yes, I need you, my fairy-tale. Because you are the only person I can talk with about the shade of a cloud, about the song of a thought — and about how, when I went out to work today and looked a tall sunflower in the face, it smiled at me with all of its seeds.” – Vladimir Nabokov

130. “Be like a flower and turn your face to the sun.” – Khalil Gibran

131. “Eagle of flowers! I see thee stand, And on the sun’s noon-glory gaze; With eye like his, thy lids expand, And fringe their disk with golden rays: Though fix’d on earth, in darkness rooted there, Light is thy element, thy dwelling air, Thy prospect heaven.” – James Montgomery

132. “Never look at the sun directly, instead look at the sunflower.” – Vera Nazarian

133. “Sunflowers in the tall grass, we were born to thrive but not born to last” – Unknown

134. “I plant the sunflowers and get back daily glee.” – Unknown

135. “Some people are just so much sunshine to the square inch.” – Walt Whitman

136. “And here the sunflower of the spring shines bright in the morning’s beam.” – Ebenezer Elliott

137. “Look at the beaming side of life, just like the sunflowers, which looks upon the sun, not the dark clouds.” – Unknown

138. “Life advice from a sunflower: be bright, sunny, and positive. Spread seeds of happiness. Rise, shine, and always hold your head high.” – Unknown

More Inspirational Sunflower Quotes

139. “When you have sunflowers, you have a little bit of sunshine even on a cloudy day.” – Unknown

140. “And the yellow sunflower by the brook, in autumn beauty stood, Till fell the first from the clear cold heaven, as falls the plague on men, And the brightness of their smile was gone, from upland glade and glen.” – William C. Bryant

141. “Do you know where the sunflowers’ lights go when they die?” – Adriani Putri

142. “The sunflowers are there. They lack only the conditions of sun, heat, rain and July. Just because we cannot see them does not mean that they do not exist.” – Thích Nhất Hạnh

143. “All flowers have their own beauty, but the Sunflower alone has the distinction of being named after the sun!” – Unknown

144. “The sunflower is a mystery, just as every single thing in the universe is.” – Robert Farrar Capon

145. “When van Gogh paints sunflowers, he reveals, or achieves, the vivid relation between himself, as man, and the sunflower, as sunflower, at that quick moment of time.” – D. H. Lawrence

146. “Standing in a sunflower field on a sunny days gives you the feeling of being completely engulfed in sunshine.” – Unknown

147. “Someone was sitting in front of a sunflower, watching the sunflower, a cup of sun, and so I tried it too. It was wonderful; I felt the whole universe in the sunflower.” – Shunryu Suzuki

148. “I don’t know why, but I love sunflowers, and I just have this vivid memory of being in a field of sunflowers and how they felt like trees. They felt so tall.” – Oksana Masters

Sunflower Quotes To Help You Face The Bright Side Of Life

149. “What god does a sunflower believe in? That’s the god I believe in.” ― Marty Rubin

150.” ‘Bibliotropic,’ Hugh said. ‘Like sunflowers are heliotropic, they naturally turn towards the sun. We naturally turn towards the bookshop.’” — Jo Walton

151. “The sunflower is the most joyous of all of nature’s flowers.” — Laynni Locke

152. “Sunflowers are my friends.” — Laynni Locke

153. “Van Gogh’s sunflowers, it seems, are wilting, just like their real-life counterparts did.” — Kassia St. Clair

154. “Like sunflowers, galaxies, and fingerprints, your life is an intricately designed spiral.” — Kristen Lee

155. “Come with me into the field of sunflowers is a better line than anything you will find here, and the sunflowers themselves are far more wonderful than any words about them.” — Mary Oliver

156. “I plant sunflowers and get back my daily joy.” — Nadine Locke

157. “A sunflower for my sunflower. To brighten the dark October days you hate so much. Plant some more, and be safe in the knowledge a warm and bright summer awaits.” — Cecelia Ahern

158. “She stood out like a sunflower in a field of wheat.” — Jennifer L. Armentrout

Be like the sunflower

Model your life after the sunflower. When times are tough, make sure that you stay focused on the positive things in the same way that the sunflower keeps its face turned towards the sun.

Do your best to mimic the brightness of the yellow petals in your demeanor and the way that you treat people. And, remember to stand tall the same way the sunflower does. Don’t be afraid to show the world all the things that make you unique and special. 

Keep a few of the quotes from above around in places where you will see them and be reminded of them throughout your day. 

What’s your biggest takeaway from these beautiful sunflower quotes? Do you have any other favorite quotes to add? Let us know in the comment section below.