9 Reasons to Love Sunflowers

Article and Photos By Pam Blair

Who doesn’t love seeing a bouquet of sunflowers or a field full of them with their cheerful faces basking in the sun? When I saw a large display of them in a grocery store, they greeted me with their huge smiles, shoving each other out of the way as if to say, “Pick me! Pick me!” National Sunflower Day is August 15, and there are so many reasons to celebrate them.

• The tallest sunflower is a record-breaking 30 feet, one inch, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, and it was grown by Hans-Peter Schiffer in Germany. It was so tall, a fire brigade used ladders to measure it, and scaffolding was needed to keep it upright.

• Sunflowers are bee magnets, with each flower head producing a large volume of pollen and nectar that attracts bees and other pollinators.

• They grow in the direction the sun shines. How cool is that? The sunflower’s face always turns toward the sun throughout the day thanks to a unique trait called heliotropism, causing the flower to start the day facing east and end it facing west.

• Sunflowers are good to eat. Their seeds are eaten roasted, dried, or pressed into oil that is used for cooking. The older leaves are edible, and you can put them in a salad.

• Vincent Van Gogh wanted to be known as the painter of sunflowers, and he painted a series of them in the 1880s that are among his most famous works.

• A single sunflower head consists of 1,000–2,000 tiny flowers called florets, which make it appear to be one flower head. The florets later become seeds.

• For many, sunflowers symbolize optimism, positivity, faith, and unconditional love. In the Chinese culture, they symbolize longevity and good luck.

• Sunflowers absorb radiation, lead, and other toxins from the earth. After the Chernobyl nuclear meltdown in 1986, millions of sunflowers were planted around the site.

• The sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine, where it is being planted everywhere as a symbol of solidarity.

The next time you see a bouquet of sunflowers or a cluster of them growing by the roadside, think of their amazing characteristics and long history of making people happy. You may not be able to resist gathering an armful of stems so they can work their magic on you.