Height: Up to 4 meters - Flowers: Up to 40 centimeters
The 'Titan' variety is the giant among sunflowers. It reaches a height of up to 4 meters and produces flowers up to 40 centimeters across. As a cultivated variety, it is pollen-free and therefore suitable for allergy sufferers. All sunflowers produce so-called composite flowers, which consist of up to 15,000 individual florets. Their flowering period is usually between July and October. The high nectar content, which can reach a sugar content of up to 35% at midday, attracts numerous butterflies, bumblebees, and honeybees to the pollen. Predatory insects are also attracted, which devour aphids and other pests in the immediate vicinity. Sunflowers are so-called compass plants, which always turn towards the sunlight (heliotropism). The bud follows the sun from east to west, returning to the east at night. Incidentally, flowering sunflowers are no longer heliotropic. The flower heads then predominantly point towards the sunrise. Sunflower seeds (kernels) have a high content of unsaturated fatty acids. In Russia, Turkey, and Spain, the seeds are often eaten roasted.
Natural habitat: Sunflowers are primarily found in North and Central America, and archaeological evidence shows they were cultivated as early as 4,000 years ago along the Mississippi River and in Mexico. Spanish sailors brought the first sunflower seeds to Europe in the 16th century.
