

Not only did Daniil Bokaryov cultivate the plant, but he developed a special technology for mass production and harvesting of Sunflowers and extraction of Sunflower oils. So, cultivation began in Russia in a village called Alexeyevka by a merchant named Daniil Bokaryov. Strangely this is where Sunflowers then develop a link to Lent as Sunflower Oil was permitted during Lent as part of the fasting tradition. I’ve listed here, sunflowers and the other plants from Eastern North American contributions, however, the Sunflower is seen as the most economically important of the four.Ĭultivation continued for around 300 years and was accelerated in the 1800s when exported to Russia by members of the Russian Orthodox Church. Seeds were inevitably taken back to Europe, predominantly by Spanish ships and to this day, the sunflower is one of the four most important plant exports to Europe according to an investigative article by. Skip forward many generations to around 1510 when the Europeans infiltrated both the North and South American Tribes and we begin to expand the modern world use of the plant entirely. Within a few hundred years, this domestication spread to southern parts of what is now North America, namely Tennessee and Kentucky (circa 2300 BC), where native Americans cultivated sunflowers for symbolism to Deities, as well as for other purposes such as herbal uses and medicinal remedies. There’s sufficient evidence of sunflowers being grown and domesticated around 5000 years ago (circa 1600 BC) in Mexico, commonly cultivated by the Aztecs and the Otomi Tribes of Mexico. But in terms of popularity, we can safely say the sunflower first became popular in the southeastern United States. The sunflower as a wildflower has existed for thousands of years in the wild. And certain varieties are grown to feed birds, wildlife, pets, and livestock. They are also used for medicinal purposes. These are manufactured into food, health and beauty products. Sunflowers are grown commercially, as a crop for their oils and seeds.

I hope you enjoy reading about them, and maybe finding a sunflower that you’d like to grow. I’ve written all about 31 of the most wonderful sunflowers, the varieties, characteristics, and the colors are amazing. I’ve also found a sunflower called Berkheya, that has spikey, thistle-like leaves, it has many small, pale purple flowers, and is a dwarf that only grows up to 12 inches high. There are a few sunflowers that have long wedged or cuneate shaped leaves. Most sunflowers have dark green, cordate or heart-shaped leaves. They can be single or multi-stemmed and have many flowers on one plant. Colored sunflowers are dwarf and giant varieties, and come in a multitude of colors such as red, orange, pink, and purple.Īll these sunflowers can have blooms that are large and small. Taller sunflowers, often referred to as a giant, grow up to and beyond 17 feet tall. Dwarf varieties often only grow up to 4 feet tall. Most sunflowers have these characteristics, a dark center disc, and rays of yellow petals.īut there are many varieties, colors, and sizes that sunflowers come in too. A big round, warm yellow disc, that rays of warm yellow light extend from. Most Sunflowers look like how we perceive the sun. Sunflowers love following the sun What Are the Characteristics of Sunflowers? Helio means sun and tropism means turning. This is because they look like the sun and their young buds and blooms follow the sun too. Sunflowers are so-called from the Greek word, and their scientific name, Helianthus. We call them Sunflowers General Information About Sunflowers Why Are They Called Sunflowers?.

They have an internal system that moves food around the plant.This may look very sciencey, but basically, this means – Division Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants.Superdivision Spermatophyta – Seed plants.Subkingdom Tracheobionta – Vascular plants.Hellianthus Annuus, or Common Sunflower falls into the following categorization:. This means they grow for one season, then produce seeds that grow the following year.

#Helio words meaning sun how to#
Here’s how to pronounce Helianthus Annuus. Helios means sun, Anthus means flower and annuus means annual. They are Greek words and translated they mean annual sunflower. Helianthus annuus is the scientific name given to the plant we know as an annual sunflower.
