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Helianthus petiolaris

Common name:	Prairie Sunflower	Family:	Compositae
Author:	Nutt.	Botanical references:	43, 200, 235
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Central to western N. America - Manitoba and Minnesota south to Arizona.
Habitat:	Sandy soils[43]. Dry prairies[235].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Prairie Sunflower [B,P,L],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	petiolaris = with petioles;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Asterales. Renamed to Asteraceae -- Aster family
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: USA Invasive.

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 3m. It is hardy to zone 4. It is in flower from July to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees and flies. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Seed.

Seed - raw or cooked. An oily texture[161, 177]. The seed can be ground into a powder and kneaded into seed butter[257].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Salve.

The powdered leaves, either on their own or in an ointment, have been used as a dressing for sores and swellings[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Succeeds in most soils in a sunny position[1]. Requires a rich soil[1]. Dislikes shade[1]. Grows well on dry soils[200].
The young growth is extremely attractive to slugs, plants can be totally destroyed by them[K].
This species hybridizes in the wild with H. annuus[274].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer or rabbits[233].

Propagation

Seed - sow in mid spring in situ. An earlier start can be made by sowing 2 - 3 seeds per pot in a greenhouse in early spring. Use a fairly rich compost. Thin to the strongest seedling, give them an occasional liquid feed to make sure they do not become nutrient deficient and plant them out in late spring or early summer.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.