Sunflower

plant

Also known as: Helianthus

Written and fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Oct. 15, 2026 •History

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Angiosperm
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Helianthus

Sunflower, (Helianthus annuus), annual flowering plant known for its spectacular size, large, showy flower heads, and edible seeds. The sunflower is native to North America and is widely cultivated as an ornamental and as a commercial food crop, its seeds being the source of sunflower oil. The genus Helianthus comprises nearly 70 other species, including the Jerusalem artichoke (H. tuberosus), which is cultivated for its edible underground tubers.

Physical description

The common sunfloweris an annual herb with a rough hairy stem 1–4.5 meters (3–15 feet) high and broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves 7.5–30 cm (3–12 inches) long arranged in spirals. Young sunflowers exhibit heliotropism, meaning that they track the Sun’s movement across the sky each day. The movement is thought to increase their exposure to sunlight for photosynthesis, promoting growth.

The attractive heads of flowers are 7.5–15 cm wide in wild specimens and often 30 cm or more in cultivated types. The disk flowers are brown, yellow, or purple, while the petallike ray flowers are yellow. The fruit is a single-seeded achene. Oilseed varieties typically have small black achenes, while those grown for direct seed consumption, known as confection varieties, have larger black-and-white achenes that readily separate from the seed within.

Venus's-flytrap. Venus's-flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) one of the best known of the meat-eating plants. Carnivorous plant, Venus flytrap, Venus fly trap

Britannica Quiz

Plants: From Cute to Carnivorous

Uses

Sunflower seedSunflower seeds removed from their shells.

The common sunflower is valuable from an economic as well as from an ornamental point of view. The leaves are used as fodder, the flowers yield a yellow dye, and the seeds contain oil and are used for food. The seeds may be eaten dried, roasted, or ground into nut butter and are common in birdseed mixes. The sweet yellow oil obtained by compression of the seeds is considered equal to olive or almond oil for table use. Sunflower oil cake is used for stock and poultry feeding. The oil is also used in soap and paints and as a lubricant.