This record-breaking sunflower in Indiana towers 35 feet high, as tall as a telephone pole
Here’s everything you need to know about the world’s tallest sunflower.
In Fort Wayne, Indiana, gardener Alex Babich has grown a sunflower like no other: it’s officially the tallest in the world. The plant, affectionately named “Clover,” measured a staggering 35 feet 9 inches, according to Guinness World Records.
“When the flower was younger, about 10 feet tall, my son started picking a few hundred four-leaf clovers and put them on the leaf of the sunflower for good luck. I didn’t think I could ever reach it," Babich told USA Today, “but between my wife’s prayers and son’s clovers we made it.” That’s how the flower got its curious name.
Babich, who relocated from Ukraine in 1991, developed a passion for gardening not just as a hobby but as a way to connect to his heritage. For the past seven years, he has cultivated sunflowers, Ukraine’s national flower, tending to them with great care and resolve.
In 2022, he broke the U.S. record with a sunflower over 25 feet tall, then improved on that the next year. Then, Babich aimed higher, and achieved the world record on September 3, 2025, when “Clover” was officially measured and certified. “I was actually trying to accomplish the state record and hit the world record,” he admitted.
This record sets a new benchmark: it beats the previous world record of 30 feet 1 inch, set by German gardener Hans-Peter Schiffer back in 2014.
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Babich has thanked his community in Fort Wayne for their support, and attributes some of the sunflower’s success to shared gardening knowledge—swapping seeds and tips with people around the world. The plant also had scaffolding built around it to support its tremendous height during growth.
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