Sunflower Helianthus annuus Introduced into Europe from South America in the 16th century, its botanical name means ‘flower of the sun’ - helios (sun), anthos (flower). This is because the flower heads appear to follow the course of the sun, turning to face it, hence also their Spanish and French names, girasol and tournesol, respectively. In ancient Peru, where they are thought to have come from originally, the sunflower was the Incan symbol of their sun god. Sunflower headdresses were worn by their priestesses and golden representations decorated Inca temples. As a food, the native Americans used dried and roasted seeds to produce a kind of cake and were also able to extract a culinary oil from them, and the young flower buds can also be steamed or boiled and eaten in much the same way as artichoke. Not surpringly, the first European country to receive the sunflower was Spain, from their newly discovered lands in the Americas. However, it was initially seen as a decorative plant, not being seen as a food source until its arrival in Russia in the 18th century. At that time the orthodox church forbade the consumption of oil-yielding plants on fast days, but the sunflower, being a new introduction was excluded and the seeds became a popular snack, roasted or salted, causing Russia to become the largest producers of sunflowers. Then, in the 1720’s oil extraction was perfected in Bavaria, leading to massive production all over Eastern Europe. In European folklore sunflowers were believed to make wishes come true: pick a flower at sunset, make a wish and, by the time the sun has come round again, your wish should have been granted. It was also believed in some countries that the flower was a means of divination and that placing a sunflower under the bed would reveal the truth of any particular matter to the sleeper. In country magic the sunflower was said to be ruled by the Sun and was linked to fertility, wisdom and health, and a popular charm for a woman who wished to conceive was to eat sunflower seeds. In holistic medicine, such as Ayurveda, sunflower seeds are used as an expectorant and diuretic, used in the treatment of coughs, colds, bronchitis and kidney troubles. Nutritionally, the roasted seeds are high in the B vitamins, are a useful source of vitamin E and are high in linoleic acid, needed for the maintenance of cell membranes. The oil is also high in oleic acid, another polyunstaurated fatty acid which makes it a good cooking medium for those interested in avoiding rising bad, or LDL, cholesterol levels.