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Cucumberleaf sunflower

Helianthus debilis

Also called Weak Sunflower, Beach Sunflower, Dune Sunflower

Cucumberleaf sunflower
Photo: Bob Peterson from North Palm Beach, Florida, Planet Earth!, CC BY-SA 2.0

Cucumberleaf sunflower is a species of sunflower native to the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the USA, often grown as a drought-tolerant annual or short-lived perennial. It is valued for its sandy-soil tolerance and its ability to form a dense groundcover.

Family
Asteraceae (Daisy family)
Grows as
Annual, Perennial
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply but infrequently, letting the soil dry out between waterings.
Soil
Well-drained sandy or poor soil; tolerates lean ground.
Temperature
18–35 °C; damaged by hard freezes, so protect below about 0 °C.
How easy
Easy
Native range
E. U.S.A. to Texas
Climate
temperate

About

Helianthus debilis is a species of sunflower known by the common names cucumberleaf sunflower, beach sunflower, weak sunflower, East Florida beach sunflower, and East Coast dune sunflower. It is native to the United States, where it can be found along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. It is known elsewhere as an introduced species, such as South Africa, Australia, Taiwan, Slovakia, and Cuba.

This species may be an annual or perennial herb. It is usually perennial but it may last only one season in climates where freezes occur. It can reach a height of 2 meters. The stem grows from a taproot and may grow erect or decumbent. It can also spread along the ground, becoming a dense groundcover. The leaves are usually arranged alternately and are variable in shape and size. The largest are up to 14 centimeters long by 13 wide.

Other Helianthus plants

Southeastern sunflower · Helianthus ambiguus · Swamp sunflower · Common sunflower · Western sunflower · Silverleaf sunflower · Arizona sunflower · Purpledisk sunflower · Serpentine sunflower · Helianthus brevifolius · California sunflower · Lakeside sunflower

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Helianthus debilis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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