Helianthus paradoxus
paradox sunflower
Family Asteraceae
About
Pecos sunflower is a salt-tolerant annual of inland salt marshes, which arose tens of thousands of years ago as a hybrid of the common and prairie sunflowers.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Not recorded. We have no source on whether this plant is safe for cats, dogs or other pets — that is not the same as safe. Keep it out of reach until you have checked.
- People
- Not recorded.
- Light
- Full sun gives the most flowers; partial shade is tolerated. General guidance for the genus
- Propagation
- Seed or stem cuttings. General guidance for the genus
“General guidance for the genus” marks advice sourced for the genus as a whole rather than this species.
Field notes
Morphology
Grows 1–3 m tall, branched near the top. Three-veined, lance-shaped leaves reach 17.5 cm. Heads 5–7 cm across have bright yellow rays around a dark purplish-brown centre, appearing in September and October.
Distribution & habitat
West Texas, New Mexico and Utah, in salt marshes, spring seeps, wet meadows and pond and stream margins that depend on groundwater.
Ecology
A halophyte tolerating salinity of 10–40 parts per thousand, more than either parent species (H. annuus × H. petiolaris), from which it formed 75,000–208,000 years ago.
Conservation
Listed under the US Endangered Species Act in 1999; IUCN assesses it as Least Concern.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- United States
- IUCN status
- Least concern
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- Not recorded
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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