The sunflower is an amazing plant. Its botanical name is helianthus annus. It’s a very tall plant, with an average height of 9.8 feet (three meters). The tallest sunflower plant on record was an astonishing 30.1 feet (9.17 meters). It has large flower heads, and the flowers could be a variety of colors, including yellow, orange, red, or other colors.
One of the amazing things about the sunflower is that it’s all about mathematics.
The flowers in the center of the sunflower are called disk flowers, and they are organized in a spiral pattern.
According to Tree Hugger: The pattern of
seeds within a sunflower follows the Fibonacci sequence, or 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13,
21, 34, 55, 89, 144.
And, not only is a sunflower mathematical, it’s also useful. People and birds eat the seeds. Sunflower oil is not good for eating. Apparently, it’s used in fast foods.
Unfortunately, sunflower oil is connected with all sorts of health problems, including heart disease and cancer. It has higher than normal omega 6 contents, connected to the production of bad cholesterol (LDL). If you do use it in cooking, please do so in moderation. Sunflower oil is very good, however, when used topically. It is good for the skin and it helps retain moisture and fight wrinkles.
Sunflower seeds are good to eat. They are also good to put into bird feeders. They are very nutritious and are an excellent source of vitamin E and a good source of vitamin B1 and copper. They are also a source of manganese, selenium,
phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin B6, folate, and niacin.
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| portrait of sunflowers, by me |
People love to look at sunflowers and they are great subject for paintings.
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| Another version of sunflower, by me |
The most famous person to paint portraits of sunflowers was Vincent Van Gogh.
I love sunflowers! I loved sunflower seeds as a child and I do hope they are healthy, because I ate them all the time (those little snack packets you could buy at the local candy store). I don't harvest my flowers – I let the birds snack on them, but I cut the sunflowers for my kitchen table. And, speaking of your pattern post from the other day – isn't nature wonderful with its mathematics?
I love sunflowers and I learned so much from reading your post. After reading this post it makes even more sense why Monet used them in his artwork, don't you think? 🙂
With Love,
Mandy