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I’ve had this Homeleo solar sunflower garden stakes for more than 5 months and this review details my thoughts on quality and performance.
I bought a set of two on April 24, 2021, as you can see by the receipt below.
I do like them and think they’re decent for the price I paid but I’ve also had time to note the things that bother me, too.
Product Description
Homeleo sells these as a set of two individual sunflowers on metal stakes that you stick into the ground.
A solar panel attached to the stem needs sunlight in order to gather energy throughout the day to power the rechargeable battery inside the compartment.
There are three layers of yellow petals. In the very center of each bloom is a dark grey circle surrounded by a lighter grey, stiff, fuzzy material. They do look realistic from a distance.
Each stake has two large leaves just above the solar panel.
This photo shows the sunflower on the first day I set it up outside.
The colors, at the time, were vivid. The petals were a bright yellow and the leaves were dark green. (You’ll see later how these have changed over time.)
They’re visible from a distance during the day and stand out. Visitors will recognize them as a flower.
Fairy Lights in the Sunflower Petals
The light comes from a copper wire that is wound around the base of each flower between the layers of petals. Along this wire are very small LED lights attached to a copper wire.
This causes the light to glow through the petals. At night, it’s a bright, yet warm, yellowish-white.
The flowers are about 30-40 feet from our patio and we can see them very clearly at night from our patio table.
In the photo above, it’s been up about 24 hours and is next to some solar lanterns I have that line a walkway along the back edge of our pool.
Leaves, Petals, and Stake
This is where I have a lot to say. These didn’t cost a great deal but there are some things that I wish I’d thought about before I bought them.
First, the flower is horizontal so when you’re looking at it from a distance at night you do see a glow and you can tell it’s a flower but the view is much better from the top.
If you’re going to put these somewhere where you’ll be looking down on them they’ll be very pretty but where I have them they’re just below eye level from us and our guests when we’re sitting at the patio.
For this location, I would have done better with something that had clusters of flowers that pointed in different directions and were attached at different angles so I’d have a few that took up some vertical space.
Second, because the petals are fabric they’re fading quickly in our strong, Arizona sun. When I look at them today, they still seem yellow. It’s only when I compare them to the images I took when I first got them that I can see a drastic difference after 5 months.
None of the petals have come loose but one of the leaves – which are also a stiff fabric – fell off only after a couple of days of being up.
We did have a dust storm that day which brings with it strong winds so I wasn’t very surprised.
I stored the leaf inside intending to reattach it at some point. I’ve just pulled it out and noticed not only that it has faded but that the leaf that was still attached has become very limp.
This is likely the result of sitting in the sun. Our temps have been over 100 for months now.
The leaf that I’d stored inside is still stiff and darker in color.
I discovered that there was a hole in the stake in which I could reinsert the stem of the leaf. I’ve done so and it seems to be holding but I think gluing it in would help it withstand future storms.
Speaking of storms, we’ve had a pretty wet monsoon season this summer with heavy winds and pounding rain and the stakes themselves have held up well. Other than the one leaf falling off I’ve had no issues with performance.
The stakes are very long and while they wiggle a bit and tilt over time I only have to hold them upright periodically and stamp the ground around them to get them back to being straight.
I’ve had flowers that have thick plastic stakes but these Homeloe sunflowers have thin, stainless steel ones that have a pointed tip coated with black plastic. The flower actually comes in two pieces. You first put the pointed end of the stake in the ground and then push the green stem of the flower into the center of the top of the stake.
I made the mistake of trying to push the stake portion in by hand rather than using a mallet or hammer and found that the round lip of the stake is jagged. It cut into the center of my hand, drawing blood.
I seriously suggest using a tool to whack the stake into the ground. In fact, I typically follow these steps to stick my stake lights into the ground.
The portion of the stake above the solar panel is coated in thick, green plastic to simulate a stem.
Solar Panel Run Time
Because we are just outside Phoenix and get more than our share of sunshine, my flowers get the full amount of exposure necessary to generate a full charge nearly every day.
The manufacturer says they’ll run 12-14 hours with a full charge but I’ve never had them run that long.
I get about 8 hours from them each night.
They have a 1.2V, 600mAh AAA Ni-MH rechargeable battery stored in a compartment that is attached with a black plastic loop around the midpoint of the stake. This compartment is topped with a Polycrystal Solar Panel(2V/100mA).
On the back of this compartment is an on/off switch. To have the flowers come on automatically when the sun goes down just leave the switch in the on position.
Dimensions
- Full length from top of the flower to the tip of the stake: 25 1/2″
- Flower diameter: 6″
- Leaf length: 6″
- Solar box: 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ x 3/4″
Pros
Cons
Price
Despite the fading colors, I’ve had five months of use from my pair of Homeleo solar sunflowers which works out to $3.80/month.
I haven’t put any effort into cleaning them in that time. Assuming I get a full year out of them that works out to $1.60/month.
I’ve had a number of compliments from friends and family who have been with us on the patio at night and were able to view them when they were lit up.
Final Thoughts
While these have faded pretty quickly, they were cheap enough that I still think they were worth the money.
I haven’t lost any petals during that time and I was able to rescue and reattach the one leaf that blew off.
The lights still work and they look nice at night. Since I view them from a distance during the day, I don’t really notice the faded color.
For a quick hit of color in my yard, these have done the job.