Sunflower

A bright ornamental plant for flower growers, and for everyone else - a source of delicious seeds and aromatic oil - this is sunflower, which is popularly called sunflower. This annual herbaceous plant is distinguished by an erect tall stem, which is covered with rather stiff hairs. Dark green leaves in an oval-heart-shaped sunflower are also covered with short, pubescent hairs.

Large diameters of sunflower flowers turn to the sun during the day. Orange-yellow reed petals in length reach 4-7 centimeters, and internal tubular petals are distinguished by a brown-yellow color and can be calculated in the amount of 500-3000 pieces.

In August, the sunflower blooms and continues for exactly a month, after which fruits are tied, which are somewhat compressed, slightly rugged achenes of a wide variety of colors - white, gray, striped, but most often black.

North America is considered the birthplace of sunflower. At the same time, archaeologists confirmed the fact of cultivation of this plant by Indians more than 2000 years ago. Sunflower appeared on European territory only at the beginning of the 16th century - the Spaniards brought it to their country and began to grow it in botanical gardens.

The most important thing in sunflower is seeds, for the sake of which, in fact, this fertile plant is cultivated. So, sunflower seeds are usually eaten raw sludge fried, and also used to obtain oil, the so-called "sunflower. "

By the way, sunflower is the main honey plant from which bees collect a large amount of pollen. Natural sunflower honey is distinguished by a golden color, sometimes with a slightly greenish tint.

Sunflower composition

Sunflower (in its leaves and flowers) contains scopoline, coumarine glycoside, flavonoids, carotenoids, triterpene saponides, anthocyanins and phenolcarboxylic acids.

Sunflower benefits

The obvious benefits of sunflower for human health are due to the composition of all parts of this beautiful plant. For example, a tincture is made from dry leaves and marginal sunflower flowers to increase appetite. In addition, an infusion of edge tongue colors is also used as an antipyretic agent.

Not only in cooking, but also for medicinal purposes, oil obtained from the seeds of this plant is used. So, sunflower oil can be consumed orally as a mild laxative, and externally for rubbing sick joints. The benefits of sunflower (plant roots) are relevant in the treatment of osteochondrosis, for cleansing joints from salts, as well as the elimination of kidney stones.

Sunflower harm

As for contraindications to the use of this plant, the harm of sunflower, namely the decoction of its roots, can manifest itself in the presence of insoluble stones, as well as during pregnancy and lactation.