Helianthus cusickii

Helianthus cusickii
Helianthus cusickii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Helianthus
Species: H. cusickii
Binomial name
Helianthus cusickii
Gray

Helianthus cusickii is a species of sunflower known by the common names Cusick's sunflower and turniproot sunflower. It is native to the western United States from California to Idaho, where it grows in mountain forests and foothills. This wildflower is a perennial growing from a thick, fleshy taproot to a maximum height near a meter. The lance-shaped leaves reach 15 centimeters in length, and the stem and foliage are often covered in long hairs. The flower heads have a base of long, hairy green phyllaries. The center of the head is filled with yellow disc florets and the ray florets around the edge are up to 4 centimeters long.

Some Plateau Indian tribes used the roots to treat erectile dysfunction, wasting, and tuberculosis. [1]

References

  1. ^ Hunn, Eugene S. (1990). Nch'i-Wana, "The Big River": Mid-Columbia Indians and Their Land. University of Washington Press. p. 353. ISBN 0-295-97119-3. 

External links


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