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Sunflower
Sunflowers are annual plants and are species of helianthus annuus. They possess large inflorescence i.e. flowering head. It is very useful and very beautiful flower and is used in decorating houses and is also used in floral arrangements. It is cultivated on large scale because of its commercial importance. The seeds of this flower are very valuable which are used in production of oil, butter and also many other products. Sunflower plants are tall and grow as high as 8.15 feet (2.4 to 4.6 m). Most sunflower plants have rough and hairy oval to rather than leaves and have fairly large flower heads 8 to 12 inches (20 to 0.5 cm). They have yellow florets of ray which are sterile. These ray florets can also be of different colors such as maroon, orange and other colors. Most sunflowers have brown disk florets which is slightly purple and actually this produce seeds. The inedible husk is the wall of the fruit and seed stay within this kernel.
There are different names given to different types of sunflowers such as Autumn Beauty which is smaller 5 feet (1.5 m) with flower heads to just 15 cm, Teddy Bear which is even smaller than above one which is 3 feet (0.9 m) with double flower heads to 5 (12.7 cm) across and Russian Giant which is around tall somewhat to 12 feet with flower heads a 1 across, Holiday is 4 to 5 inches tall with yellow flower heads and many more.
Heliotropism
Sunflowers exhibit floral heliotropism. It is a diurnal motion of plants as they track sun`s motion from east to west. At sunrise sunflower`s face is turned towards the east and over the day they follow Sun from east to west and return to eastward orientation in night. This action is performed by motor cells in pulvinus which is present on stem just below the bud.Cultivation
There are various methods of planting sunflower. The best Scientific American method is to plant in rows in north to south with 9 inches apart and in rows 30 inches apart. Instead of growing in open they use boxes or singly in pots. A foot is essential for planting the seedlings in ground and they are enriched with manure. Rich soil is not essential for its cultivation and any kind of soil is suitable so they are very easy to produce and grow even in neutral and slightly alkaline soil. One should add lime if soil is somewhat acidic. All it requires is ample amount of sunlight. They stretch themselves in sun light and sometimes fall over their own weight when they are placed in partial sunlight or shade.
Watering the sunflowers plants is good for their maximum growth though they can also survive the period of drought. Sunflowers can tolerate heat and even dry conditions but they cannot tolerate frost.
A well tilled soil with not too much of clay in composition is desirable for successful cultivation. Certain depth is necessary as roots spread from 12 inches to 15 inches in each direction. Fertilizing the bed with rotten manure or maintaining balanced fertilizers is essential for its maximum growth.
Diseases & Cure
A sunflower also becomes the target of many diseases although some of diseases are mostly dominant in U.S. but so far there are at least 30 diseases identified on Sunflower. Some of the diseases are Sclerotinia wilt, rust and downy mildew, Phoma black stem, Phomopsis stem canker, Verticillium wilt, Rhizopus head rot, stalk rots etc.
The effective control and Cure measures for sunflower are the planting of resistant hybrids with a minimum rotation of sunflower crops for 4 years between successive crops and also Cure is done through seed treatment with Apron and Anchor.
Different diseases have different disease cycle and Cure as rust leads to reduced seed count, less oil content and smaller seed size so to prevent sunflower from it effective method is to use plant resistant breeds. Similarly Downy Mildew holds the seedling stage and causes heads to face skyward and it decreases crop yield so disease management and cure methods discussed above are very important for good yields of crops.
Uses
There are a numerous uses of sunflower seed. They are processed as peanut butter or sunbutter. Oil is extracted from sunflower fruit which is used in cooking oil, as carrier oil and it is also used to produce margarine and biodiesel. It is cheaper than olive oil so it is in demand. It is also used as food for birds. A sunflower seed have a high feeding value and contains about 16 per cent albumen and 21 per cent fat.
After processing of oil the cake remained is used as livestock food.
It acts as a soil improver in damp soils as it absorbs quantities of water. It finds its use in textile as large portion of fiber is mixed with silk to improve quality. It is a Bee plant as they take nectar from it in large quantities. It is used in the treatment of many infections and diseases such as bronchial, coughs and colds, laryngeal and pulmonary affections, also in whooping cough. Apart from these there are many medicinal uses.
They also relieve in constipation as it add fibers, minerals and vitamins in diet.
About Author: This article is donated by Sajal Agarwal Mail ID: sajal001@gmail.com, Mobile : 9999775877-INDIA