Checklist » Asteraceae » Helianthus annuus
Last updated 10/12/2020 by David Giblin.
Helianthus annuus L.[FNA21, HC, HC2]
common sunflower

Publication: Sp. Pl. 2: 904. 1753.

Origin: Native and introduced populations in Washington

selected vouchers: WTU

Notes: FNA21: "Helianthus annuus is widely distributed, including weedy, cultivated, and escaped plants. It is the only native North American species to become a major agronomic crop. Despite its considerable variability, attempts have failed to produce a widely adopted infraspecific system of classification. Forms with red-colored ray laminae, known from cultivation and occasionally seen escaped, trace their ancestry to a single original mutant plant. It hybridizes with many of the other annual species."

References:

» Hopkins, C. O. and W. H. Blackwell. 1977. Synopsis of Suaeda (Chenopodiaceae) in North America. Sida 7: 147-173.
Synonyms & Misapplied Names:
Helianthus annuus L. ssp. lenticularis (Douglas ex Lindl.) Cockerell