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Little sunflower

Helianthus pumilus

Also called Dwarf Sunflower

Little sunflower
Photo: Jeff Birek https://www.inaturalist.org/people/jefsilentf, CC BY 4.0

Helianthus pumilus, the little or bush sunflower, is a small North American perennial native to dry, rocky mountain slopes and plains of Wyoming, Colorado and Montana. It grows best in full sun and lean, well-drained soil, where it needs little water once established.

Family
Asteraceae (Daisy family)
Grows as
Shrub, Perennial
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply but infrequently, letting the soil dry out between waterings.
Soil
Lean, gritty, well-drained soil; rocky or sandy mixes suit it.
Temperature
Hardy to around -30 °C; tolerates hot summers.
How easy
Easy
Native range
Wyoming to Colorado

About

Helianthus pumilus is a North American species of sunflower known by the common name little sunflower or bush sunflower. It is found in the western United States, primarily the Rocky Mountain region of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, with a few isolated populations in Utah and Idaho.

Helianthus pumilus grows on dry rocky soil in the mountains and nearby plains. It is a perennial herb up to 100 cm (40 inches) tall. One plant usually produces 1–6 flower heads, each containing 8–13 yellow ray florets surrounding 30 or more yellow or brown disc florets.

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 pumilus 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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