You'll Never Look at Sunflowers the Same Way Once You Know These Facts

With their dark, seed-studded centers encircled by a fringe of sunny yellow petals, sunflowers spread cheerful goodwill as they follow the sun across the sky. But did you know these surprising facts about sunflowers?

A sunflower at sunrise.Photo bySage Scott.

1. Sunflowers Are Native To North America

Sunflowers originate from the center of North America, from the Canadian plains provinces to the American Midwest. While Kansas is known as the Sunflower State, North Dakota currently produces the most sunflowers in the United States.

2. But They Took a World Tour with Spanish Conquistadors

After being taken from their native North America to Spain, sunflowers quickly captivated European growers for their ornamental and oil-producing value. Revered for their beauty and utility, sunflowers rapidly spread across the continent.

Kansas state flag.Photo byCanva.

3. The Sunflower is the State Flower of Kansas

Kansas adopted the sunflower as its state flower in 1903, symbolizing the state's wild beauty. Every summer, Kansas fields bloom with these golden rays, drawing visitors from all over. Who needs a beach when you've got a sea of sunflowers?

4. And the National Flower of Ukraine

Across an ocean away, the sunflower stands as a beacon of hope and resilience in Ukraine, symbolizing peace and solidarity. Revered in Ukrainian culture, it plays a crucial role in traditional art and folklore.

A wild sunflower stands out in a field of cultivated sunflowers.Photo bySage Scott.

5. Crop Sunflowers Are Not The Same As Wild Sunflowers

Sunflowers planted as crops differ from wild sunflowers. Cultivated sunflowers are annuals that typically bloom from mid-August through mid-September. Wild sunflowers are perennials that bloom throughout the summer in open fields and along roadsides.

6. Sunflowers Are Good For The Environment

Sunflowers aren’t just pretty to look at — they also help clean up environmental disasters. Fields of sunflowers have successfully removed toxins like lead, arsenic, and uranium from contaminated soil. After devastating nuclear disasters in Chernobyl, Ukraine, and Fukushima, Japan, clean-up crews planted millions of sunflowers to help detoxify the soil.

7. Sunflowers Aren’t Always Yellow

While yellow sunflowers are most common, there are more than 60 species of sunflowers. In addition to yellow sunflowers, look for petals that range from cream-colored to deep crimson. There are also ombre petals like the Ring of Fire sunflower variety, which is deep red near the center and bright yellow at the tips.

Sunflower painting.Photo byPixabay.

8. Vincent Van Gogh Wasn’t The Only Artist Inspired By Sunflowers

While Van Gogh's sunflowers are famous, artists like Paul Gauguin, Diego Rivera, and Gustav Klimt also fell under the flower's spell. And, of course, there is the Post Malone song. Apparently, sunflowers are the ultimate muse!

9. Sunflowers Follow The Sun

As the sun moves across the sky each day, young sunflowers tracks its progress. But, once the flower has fully matured, its face remains fixed on the eastern horizon.

10. A Sunflower is Made of Thousands of Tiny Flowers

You may look at the golden flower head and see a single bloom, but a sunflower’s fuzzy, brown center is actually made up of thousands of individual flowers. And if that’s not cool enough, the florets in the dark center of the huge flowers grow in a distinctive spiral pattern known as the Fibonacci sequence, a mathematical sequence found throughout nature.

From their humble North American origins to their starring roles in art and environmental cleanup, the humble sunflower continues to impress and inspire us. Take that, roses!

Check out the full article at Everyday Wanderer for more fun facts about sunflowers.