Common sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Corey L Gucker; Nancy L. Shaw

Treesearch

Common sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Informally Refereed

Authors:

Corey L Gucker, Nancy L. Shaw

Year:

2026

Type:

Guidebooks

Station:

Rocky Mountain Research Station

Source:

Reno, NV: Great Basin Fire Science Exchange

Download (PDF 1.53 MB)

Download (PDF 1.53 MB): https://research.fs.usda.gov/download/treesearch/81257.pdf

Abstract

Common sunflower is native to western North America, butbecause of escaped crop, horticultural, and forage cultivarsit now has a widespread North American and worldwidedistribution (Schilling 2006; Hitchcock and Cronquist 2018).Hybridization and introgression have also contributed tothe expanding distribution of common sunflower (Heiser etal. 1969). In the United States, it occurs in all states butAlaska. It is common on dry sites west of the MississippiRiver, and grows outside of cultivation in eastern states(Harrington 1967; Munz and Keck 1973; Weber 1976;Schilling 2006; Hitchcock and Cronquist 2018).

Keywords

Common sunflower, Helianthus annuus, native plants, native seed production, plant ecology, restoration, revegetation, seed technology, seeding, wildflowers

Citation

Gucker, Corey L.; Shaw, Nancy L. 2026. Common sunflower (Helianthus annuus). In: Gucker, C.L.; Shaw, N.L., eds. Western forbs: Biology, ecology, and use in restoration. Reno, NV: Great Basin Fire Science Exchange. Online: https://westernforbs.org/species/common-sunflower-helianthus-annuus/.