Sunflower Dreams

History of the Amazing Sunflower

The story of sunflower (Helianthus Annuus )
is indeed amazing. The wild sunflower is native
to North America but commercialization
of the plant took place in Russia. It was only recently
that the sunflower plant returned to North America to become
a cultivated crop. But it was the American Indian
who first domesticated
the plant into a single headed plant with
a variety of seed colors including black, white, red,
and black/white striped.

Sunflower was used in many ways throughout
the various Indian tribes. Seed
was ground or pounded into flour for cakes,
mush or bread. Some tribes mixed the meal
with other vegetables such as beans, squash,
and corn. The seed was also cracked and eaten for a snack.
There are references of squeezing the oil from the
seed and using the oil in making bread.

Non-food uses include purple dye for textiles,
body painting and other decorations. Parts of the
plant were used medicinally ranging
from snakebite to other body ointments. The oil
of the seed was used on the skin and hair. The
dried stalk was used as a building material.
The plant and the seeds were widely used in ceremonies.

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