How to Grow and Care for Sunflowers

The common sunflower is recognizable for its bright flower on a very tall stem. It is often grown in gardens. These flowers have been important in culture: they were worshipped by the ancient Inca people, and today, they represent eco-friendly movements. The artist Vincent van Gogh made a famous series of paintings about common sunflower. Wild versions of the plant branch out to many flower heads, but domesticated plants typically only have one.

Jerusalem artichoke is a North American native sunflower with large amber flower heads, broad leaves, and sturdy branches. Its tubers are a highly nutritious vegetable food crop that tastes sweet and nutty. The plant's Latin name, Helianthus tuberosus, stems from helios, the Greek word for sun, and anthos, meaning flower.

Prairie Sunflower (Helianthus petiolaris) thrives best in sunlit areas that are grassy and open and is unable to grow in shaded areas. Prairie Sunflower flowers from summer to fall and its seeds are edible. It’s indigenous to the Western United States but has migrated eastward over the years.

The woodland sunflower is an herbaceous perennial flower in the Helianthus divaricatus family. These showy yellow flowers thrive in part sun to full sun and hybridize easily. They spread through creeping rhizomes and seeds and may become invasive. The seeds are an excellent source of food for wild birds.

Thinleaf sunflower (*Helianthus decapetalus*) is indigenous to central and eastern North America. A multitude of butterfly species use this plant to feed their larvae, including the silvery checkspot and the painted lady. Muskrats feast on the stems and leaves and gather the stems to use them for building their lodges.