Native to North and South America from the genus of Helianthus, the Sunflower is an annual herbaceous plant which grows 1- 4.5 meters high. The immensely popular flat, platelike flower can grow up to 6 inches wide and is actually made up of a tight series of compound flowers that will mature into edible seeds. The Sunflower is named for both its obvious sun shape and for the way the buds and leaves exhibit heliotropism,  following the sun from east to west throughout the day. (The mature flowers remain facing east.)

The sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine and has many agricultural uses. The fibrous stems can be used in paper making, the leaves are used as fodder, the flower is used for yellow dye and the seeds are used for food, cooking oil, and as an ingredient in soap and paints. The whole plant is used for the organic compost. Interestingly for Ukraine, the flower can be used as bioremediation to extract heavy metal poisoning and other toxic ingredients from the soil.

Sunflowers are an important crop in India for the production of cooking oil.