The February 11 workshop drew over 30 LOCAL farmers and community supporters AND a SURPRISE visitor who drove 6 hours from Lubbock Texas just to join us with a few words of encouragement from Triumph Seeds -- Michelle Harre.

The seed breeders at Triumph say they see good possibilities ahead for our New Mexico sunflower project..........................

DO WE ??  THE NEXT THIRTY DAYS WILL TELL !

Pena Blanca Sunflowers has committed to the 2013 project IF we can get 30 acres committed by March 30!

A word about water: the sunflower crop will require 5 to 7 irrigations between May and August.  Most hay growers water every 15 days between mid-April and mid-October ----- check the math....... and consider becoming an OILGROWER.

Blooming sunflowers remind us all to LOOK UP --- (it keeps us from goin' down......)

FEBRUARY 11  WINTER WORKSHOP HAS BEEN SCHEDULED IN PENA BLANCA FOR SUNFLOWERS!

Farmers and Land Owners/Managers  in Pena Blanca, Sile, Bernalillo, and Santo Domingo, Cochiti, San Felipe and Santa Ana Pueblos are invited to attend a workshop to learn the results of last year's hybrid Sunflower crop.

WHO made money?

WHAT did we learn?

WHEN will we plant more sunflowers?

WHERE will this beautiful crop be seen growing in 2013?

WHY is there so much excitement over Pena Blanca Sunflowers?

NMSU extension agents will present the answers to these and other questions.

The owner of the newly registered company  "Pena Blanca Sunflowers" will SHOW and TELL

the results of the processing, packaging and selling of last summer's crop of black oil seed and will present the opportunity to sign growers' contracts ON THE SPOT for 2013 !

..............................

FESTIVAL 2012 VIDEO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oLNGShO23c&list=UUCsiDS_Mk5auS7WgzyBAotA&index=9

Here's where to purchase our locally grown black oil sunflower seed for wild bird feeding:
Affiliates of La Montanita Co-op in Los Alamos, Gallup, Santa Fe and Albuquerque
http://www.lamontanita.coop/
And the Wild Birds Unlimited franchise in Santa Fe
/http://santafe.wbu.com/ 

Please call us if you find an empty shelf!

Festival of the Cranes

Greetings! The harvest is in progress and we are very excited seeing all the sunflower seeds stacking up! 

The Sunflower Project will be attending the 25th Festival of the Cranes at Bosque del Apache this year selling, you guessed it, bird seed! We will be there on Friday, November 16th to Sunday, November 18th.

Check out the Festival of the Cranes website to see all the interesting events going on that weekend.

Of course, no one could witness this great event if not for the Bosque del Apache wildlife reserve.

See you there!! 

Thank you Jane Moorman of NMSU Communications for producing this video of the First Annual Sunflower Festival:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thIrVU4oJJY

Sunflower Festival This Weekend ------------

Saturday and Sunday 8 am to 5 pm-

ALL INVITED ! OUR FESTIVAL GROUNDS ARE JUST 8 MILES FROM I-25 IN PENA BLANCA..... FROM ALBUQUERQUE GO NORTH TO THE SANTO DOMINGO EXIT...... FROM SANTA FE GO SOUTH TO THE COCHITI EXIT  AND FOLLOW THE SUNFLOWER SIGNS!

Numerous vendors from the Pueblos and neighboring artists' communities will be selling jewelry and art; there will be food and music under tents and local farm produce as well as sunflower oil and seeds for eating and planting in next year's garden.


Saturday's music features Chris Abeyta from noon to 2:00 and Ryan Rael 3:00 to 4:00 with Latin DJ and a Zumba dance demonstration in the morning.

Sunday's featured music by the Louis Wickham Trio

On both days there will be cooking and flower arranging demonstrations by New Mexico State University home economists: find out WHY sunflower oil should be in your kitchen!

Click this link to read today's article in The New Mexican:

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/Local%20News/082012SunflowerFestival

Thank you, John Fleck, for a delightful article in Tuesday's ABQ Journal --- front page!

http://www.abqjournal.com/main/2012/08/13/news/seeds-of-sunflower-dream-sown-in-pena-blanca.html

A visit from Jim Baca

A visit from Jim Baca on Saturday the 4th of August yielded some gorgeous photos of Deb Montoya's OILGROWING FIELD in Pena Blanca !  Check out Jim's blog : http://onlyinnewmexico.blogspot.com/
to see a few more!

Jim has family property in Pena Blanca with irrigation improvements... hmmm... wonder who wants to lease it for OIL PRODUCTION next year???

Only in New Mexico: Glorious August

Only in New Mexico: Glorious August
THANK YOU Jim Baca for sharing your photos with your followers! Maybe next year you will be one of Sandoval County's OILGROWERS yourself!

Blooming Fields

Check out the video of our wonderful fields in bloom!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lpczmctksqs

First Annual Sunflower Festival!

SUNFLOWER  FESTIVAL  DATES MOVED UP !

In order to catch the fields in full bloom, the dates for the First Annual New Mexico Sunflower Festival have moved UP !!

August 25 & 26, 2012 is the weekend to visit Pena Blanca, New Mexico just north of Albuquerque and 8 miles from Interstate 25.

Music, food, arts and crafts and educational presentations will fill the buildings and parking lot of the local Community Center, on New Mexico Highway 22 in the middle of town.

Horsedrawn hayrides will carry merrymakers to view nearby fields of blooming flowers !

Vendor booth spaces are available now at special low prices and local musicians are invited to set up a time to play under the BIG TOP.

Call the Festival Director at (505) 917-8189 for a place at the center of attention!

PLANTING A THOUSAND SUNS

     Well ! Wish a mathematician could estimate the number of suns that were planted in Pena Blanca this week --- thousands! Seedlings are UP in three fields and irrigation will bring them up (5 days hence) in several more this coming week.
     Here's a link to a video of some planting:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VskCHQK4rS0

     Now that this milestone has been reached, we turn our attention to planning the Festival in September.  Watch this space for news!

March 13, 2012

Here is a link to a short video excerpted from the October Bloom Field Day and the February Sunflower Workshop:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lpczmctksqs Following the workshop we have over 50 acres committed to plant this spring and in the next few weeks we expect to sign up several more participants, still aiming for 100 acres under cultivation in our first season.... stay tuned!

SUNFLOWER WORKSHOP HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED

New Mexico State University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All programs are available to everyone regardless of race, color,
religion, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. NMSU and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperating NMSU-COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE SUN FLOWER INTRODUCTION WORKSHOP Date: Thursday, February 16, 2012 Time: 5:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Location: Cochiti Elementary School-Cafeteria If you are an individual with a disability who is in need of an auxiliary aid or service to participate in the meeting, please
contact Del Jimenez by February 10, 2012 at 505-852-2668. 5:15- 6:00 p.m. Dinner Sponsored by: Pena Blanca Sun Flower Project 6:00 - 6:15 Welcome & Introductions - Patrice Harrison-Inglis
6:15 - 6:30 Introducing a New Crop for the Area - Steve Lucero
6:30 - 7:00 Variety Trials & Agronomic Practices-Dr. Mick O’Neill
7:00 - 7:15 Break
7:15 - 7:45 Marketing and Cost Return - Dr. Terry Crawford
7:45 - 8:15 Crop Rotation with Alfalfa - Leonard Lauriault Hosted by:
New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Service
Sandoval County Cooperative Extension Service
Northern New Mexico Outreach Program
Pena Blanca Sun Flower Project Contact: Patrice Harrison-Ingles at 505-917-8189
or email: oilgrowers@gmail.com

Resting on our laurels just a little while...

http://newscenter.nmsu.edu/news/article/8086/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UpLFyqY6t0.

DEAR FRIENDS, HERE IS A RE-POSTING OF OUR NEWS ARTICLE AND VIDEO CLIP FROM A FEW WEEKS AGO....

WE ARE CHOMPING AT THE BIT FOR "THE HOLIDAYS" TO BE DONE SO WE CAN GET BACK TO WORK AND RESCHEDULE THE SUNFLOWER WORKSHOP...

MEANWHILE WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT? WILD BIRDS ARE STEALING OUR WILD BIRD SEED CROP FROM THE DEMONSTRATION FIELD IN PENA BLANCA, THE NERVE!! WELL, AT LEAST WE KNOW THERE'S A MARKET FOR IT, EVEN IF IT'S THE "BLACK (BIRD) MARKET".   STAY TUNED.......

This is how the BIG BOYS do it !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxs4nzCyF2k

Here are a set of videos from the National Sunflower Association on you tube.  doesn't that look like fun?  can we have that much fun here in New Mexico? click on it !

TONIGHT'S WORKSHOP CANCELLED

REGRET TO ANNOUNCE TONIGHT'S SUNFLOWER WORKSHOP IS CANCELLED
DUE TO ROAD CLOSURES.
PLEASE WATCH THIS SPACE FOR RESCHEDULED DATE.