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Sunflower Soliloquy

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Sunflower Soliloquy

Words by Sue Burns

From the Greek helios, meaning “sun” and anthos for “flower,” the beautiful faces of Helianthus annus never fail to bring smiles and cheer to anyone who sees them, whether radiating light from a vase on the kitchen counter or stretching up between pumpkins in the patch. “They’re a friendly flower,” says Sarah Reynolds of Sweet Thistle Farms. “The majority are grown for oil from the pressed seeds, which can also be roasted or planted.” Sarah appreciates the variety of stems available including branching and single stems. There are, in fact, around 70 types of sunflowers— and they bring their own special kind of nourishment to our world in at least as many ways.

They nourish our minds with unexpected details.

Their structure is not a single large flower but rather an inflorescence, meaning their flower heads are formed by up to 2,000 tiny florets. Middle florets appear together as the center of a flower, and outer florets as yellow petals. Sunflowers can be annual or perennial, typically growing during the summer and through the fall. They can grow tall, with the tallest on record growing to 30 feet!

Sunflowers have been around for over 4,500 years, and in North America were a food source before other crops, like corn, became common. In Greek mythology, the story of the nymph Clytie and her unrequited love for the sun god Apollo results in her transformation into a golden flower that follows the sun’s light. The Incas brought sunflowers to their temples as symbols of the Sun God, and they are sacred in Native American culture as well.

They nourish our creativity.

Vincent Van Gogh loved the sunflowers that abounded in Arles, France. He would rise at dawn to gather and paint bouquets of them, with a goal of filling his home with art depicting their cheery, bright faces. To him, sunflowers symbolized nature’s bounty and gratitude for family, friends, and the sun’s life-giving light. His enthusiasm was contagious; while staying in France, artist Paul Gauguin painted a portrait of his friend Van Gogh— as Van Gogh painted a canvas of sunflowers.

We can let our own creative juices flow by creating bouquets, garlands and table arrangements, and planting sunflowers in the garden. They are easy to grow, and we can even make hideaways and houses by planting tall-growing varieties in rows, over arches, or in geometric outlines to create shelters where we can retreat into the comfort of nature’s embrace.

They nourish our bodies.

Sunflowers are known for their seeds, producing between 10002000 each. They can be eaten raw or roasted—remember cleaning and roasting the seeds from Halloween pumpkins after carving them? Seeds can be ground into sunflower butter, or commercially pressed for oil that contains Vitamins E and K. The versatile oil is great for cooking, has moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties beneficial for hair and skin, and is used for cosmetics, soaps and even candles. Vitamin-rich microgreen sprouts, which are delicious in salads, sandwiches and smoothies, can be grown from seed or found at farmers markets. The whole sunflower is, in fact, edible; the petals even make a soothing tea.

They nourish the environment.

In French, “sunflower” translates to tournesol, which means “turn to the sun.” Young flowers follow the sun using their circadian rhythm to benefit from as much photosynthesis as possible. It’s an inspiring experience to drive past sunflower-filled fields in the south of France, seeing them facing east in the morning, then west in the afternoon.

Sunflowers bring more than beauty to the landscape. Their brilliant color and design helps insects, birds and animals find them easily. A favorite of bees and butterflies and an attractor of beneficial insects, every nectar-filled sunflower floret that is pollinated will produce a seed. Birds and squirrels love to eat the seeds as much as we humans do, which can also be dried and saved to plant next season. Sunflower leaves are used as feed for cattle, and their stems are strong enough to make paper.

In more recent years, it’s been found that sunflowers have the ability to remove toxins from soil, naturally pulling some pollutants such as zinc, cadmium, and copper through their roots by a process known as phytoextraction. (They’ve even been floated in pond water at the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster to absorb radioactive materials!)

They nourish our spirits.

In general, sunflowers’ highest symbolism is faith and loyalty, referencing the flower’s steadfast facing and following the sun. Sunflowers are available in a spectrum of colors from the well-loved gold to vibrant orange, to deep burgundy and even white. Each color represents something different, from adoration and positive energy to good fortune and peace, and new hope. For some, these qualities nurture their religious beliefs; for others their spirituality, as they look to the sun-and sunflowers’ light for inspiration and grace in their daily lives.

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