Sunflower - cultivation, useful properties and contraindications. Botanical characteristics of sunflower

Sunflower belongs to the Compositae family ( composites) kind Helianthus, which includes several dozen species. Common in agricultural production Helianthus annus L.- An annual sunflower. Other species are annual and perennial wild and ornamental forms.

sunflower root system

The root system of sunflower is very branched. Thanks to her, he uses water and nutrients from a large volume of soil. The taproot (main) root grows vertically and penetrates the soil to a depth of 2-3 m. Quite strong and very branched lateral roots depart from it, which, depending on the state of soil moisture and the distribution of nutrients, form 2-3 tiers. In addition to the tap root and its branches, the sunflower forms stem roots that grow from the subcotyledon in the moist soil layer. The stem roots are highly branched and actively absorb water and nutrients.

Sunflower stem

The stem of cultivated forms is unbranched, rounded or ribbed, covered with stiff hairs. Its middle is filled with spongy tissue. During maturation top part leans him along with the basket. Most varieties are quite tall - their height in the steppe regions is 130-160 cm, in the forest-steppe 140-180 cm or more.

sunflower leaves

The leaves are oval-heart-shaped with a pointed apex and serrated (serrate or ribbed) edges; lower two-, three-opposite, higher along the stem - next. Leaf blades vary in size not only from the variety and growing conditions, but also from their location on the stem. Most of all the leaves of the middle tiers. All of them are covered with short stiff hairs. The petioles are long, equal to or longer than the leaf blade. In some forms of sunflower (like fuchsia), the cuttings, the edges of the leaves have a purple color of varying intensity (anthocyanin), which is an important varietal trait. The number of leaves varies greatly. Usually varieties under normal growth and development conditions have 28-34 leaves.

Sunflower inflorescence

The inflorescence is a multi-flowered round basket. External surface ripe basket has a predominantly convex, less often flat or concave shape. Along the edges of it in several rows are the leaves of the wrapper, which, before flowering, firmly adjoin each other, and the inflorescences are bulb-shaped. In some forms of sunflower, the involucre leaves are short, which is why the inflorescence has an open disk before flowering, but this is not a varietal trait. At favorable conditions a ripe basket reaches a diameter of 18-22 or more centimeters.

Two types of flowers are formed in the basket: extreme - reed, middle - tubular. Reed flowers are sterile, rarely unisexual, female with a fairly large yellow or orange-yellow, sometimes fawn corolla, which is one large petal.

Tubular flowers (there are 800-1500 of them in the basket) have jagged bracts, a five-toothed corolla, the petals of which have grown together into a tube. The corolla of most cultivars is yellow, while cultivars such as magenta are dark purple. There are five stamens in the flower, which are fused with anthers, form a tube, inside of which pollen is poured when ripe. The pistil has a single-celled ovary, a style and a two-lobed stigma. The pollen is sticky, yellow in color, with characteristic spikes on the surface. Sunflower has a proterandric type of flowering. Pollen ripens first, and later the stigma. The basket blooms for 7-10 days.

sunflower fruit

The sunflower fruit is an achene with a leathery pericarp (husk) that contains a kernel. The value of the variety depends on the ratio of the kernel and husk (by weight). The most common high-oil varieties of sunflower, which have a husk content of 18-23%.

According to the shape and size of sunflower seeds, there are two main types: oilseeds- elongated or round-elongated shape, lusal- mostly elongated. An intermediate place between these types of sunflower seeds is occupied by mezheumok.

The color of sunflower seeds is white, gray or black with a different number of stripes of white or gray and dark gray (slate) color. The weight of 1000 achenes varies within 40-120 g depending on the growing conditions.

An important feature sunflower varieties is the presence in the pericarp of achenes of a thin layer of cells that contain about 70% carbon and are therefore colored black. This layer of cells, located under the epidermis close to the surface of the achenes, is called armored, or phytomelan. It prevents damage to seeds by sunflower moth larvae.

Helianthus annuus

Family - Compositae - Asteraceae (Compositae).

The parts used are flowers, seeds, leaves, stem, root,
seeds, inflorescences.

The popular name is sunflower, oilseed sunflower, grass of the sun, Peruvian sun flower.

Pharmacy name - sunflower flowers - Helianthi flos (formerly: Flores Helianthi), sunflower oil - Helianthi oleum (formerly Oleum Helianthi).

Botanical description

Sunflower annual - annual herbaceous plant, with a tap root system that penetrates the soil by 2-3 meters and this allows it to use moisture from the depth. From the fibrous root leaves a powerful unbranched stem with a hollow core, up to the 3rd height, covered with stiff hairs. It is crowned with a large inflorescence-basket with a diameter of up to 35cm. From below, the inflorescence is surrounded by a wrapper of green tiled leaves. The leaves are alternate, heart-shaped-triangular, on long petioles, upper sessile, lower opposite, dark green, oval-heart-shaped, with a plate up to 40 cm long, pubescent with short hard hairs, with serrated edges. Flowers, like buds, "stretch" towards the sun and change their orientation from east to west during the day before flowering, after flowering, the flowers are oriented mainly to the east. have a color from light yellow to dark orange, sometimes purple. The corolla is five-membered, the flower has five stamens with free filaments, but with fused anthers. Blooms from July to September. The fruits are oblong-ovate achenes, slightly granular, slightly compressed, with a leathery pericarp, white, gray, striped or black.

Annual sunflower - homeland - North America, widely cultivated in Russia - the Volga region, the North Caucasus, the Voronekh region. Sunflower is grown in gardens and fields.

Collection and preparation

The marginal reed flowers of the baskets are cut off at the beginning of flowering and quickly dried in the shade in the open air, spreading out thin layer. Sunflower leaves are cut off from the petioles and also dried in the air in the shade. Fruit collection is determined by the color of the baskets of the plant, when about 25% of the plants have a yellow or yellow-brown color of the baskets, and all the rest are brown and dry, then it is necessary to harvest.

Active ingredients

The seeds contain oil, proteins, carbohydrates, sterols, carotenoids, organic acids. In leaves and flowers - flavonoids, coumarin glycoside scopolin, triterpene saponides, sterols (sitosterolin glycoside), carotenoids, etc.

Healing action and application

Sunflower annual has choleretic, expectorant, emollient, diuretic, antipyretic, laxative, antispasmodic, antitussive and softening effects. As well as immunomodulatory, enveloping, astringent, antirheumatic, antisclerotic and expectorant properties.

Sunflower leaves are used for fever, migraine, neuralgia, urticaria, psoriasis, gastrointestinal colic, diseases of the spinal cord and brain, bronchial asthma and colds.

Yellow sunflower petals are used internally for oncological diseases as a diuretic, and externally used to treat pemphigus vulgaris and chronic ulcers with.

The stem is used to treat diseases of the genitourinary system, kidneys, and thyroid gland. In the process of using the sunflower stem, pain in the joints can be observed, which indicate the cleansing of the articular bags from harmful layers.

Raw seeds are used for pulmonary diseases, hypertension, allergies, they facilitate the removal of sputum, normalize work nervous system. Sunflower oil is obtained from sunflower seeds, which is a component of ointments, plasters, effective oil solutions.

The flowers of the annual sunflower are used to treat jaundice, heart disease, diarrhea, rheumatism, colds, neurasthenia, bronchitis and bronchial asthma, as well as whooping cough, malaria, gout and herpes.

Sunflower inflorescence is used in the treatment of diseases of the liver, stomach, duodenum, intestines and pancreas,.

A tincture prepared from sunflower leaves and flowers is used for malaria, pulmonary diseases, neuralgia and fever, as well as to improve appetite and enhance the activity of the gastrointestinal tract.

The root is used in the treatment of arthritis, arthrosis, osteochondrosis, stones and sand in the kidneys and gallbladder.

AT traditional medicine seed oil is especially valued. With its help, diseased joints are massaged, poorly healing wounds are treated with oil dressings, and it is also used as a laxative and is recommended for the treatment and prevention of atherosclerosis.

Sunflower oil is used and as a basis for the preparation of various dosage forms(oil solutions, ointments, patches).

Annual sunflower is widely used in cooking, in cosmetology.

Recipes

- Pour 2 tablespoons of sunflower petals with 1 cup of boiling water, leave for 10 minutes and drink at night. (Cold).

- Tincture. Pour 3 tablespoons of crushed flowers with 1 glass of vodka and put in a dark place for 7 days, shaking occasionally. Strain and take 40 drops, 2 times a day. (, pulmonary diseases and neuralgia, as well as to improve appetite and enhance the activity of the digestive tract).

- Tincture. Mix and grind the flower of a young sunflower and its green small lower leaves. Fill the third part of the bottle with the resulting mixture, top up with vodka and leave to infuse for 30 days in a dark, warm place, shaking regularly. Strain and take daily 30g diluted boiled water. (Gout).

- Dry the ripened sunflower seeds in the oven and grind in a mortar. 3 tablespoons of crushed seeds pour 0.5 liters of sweetened water and simmer on fire until the volume of water decreases by one-fourth. Strain and take for 10 - 12 days. (Whooping cough).

- Fill a 0.5 l bottle with sunflower flowers, pour vodka and put in a dark place for 2 weeks, shaking occasionally. Strain and take 1 teaspoon 3 times a day. (Pneumonia).

- Chop 2 tablespoons of sunflower flowers, pour 1 cup boiling water, put on low heat for 10 minutes and let it brew for 1 hour. Strain and add boiled water to the original volume. Strain and take the resulting broth 3 tablespoons 4 times a day, 20 minutes before meals. (, diuretic).

- 3 tablespoons of fresh crushed flowers of a sunflower plant, pour 1 liter of fresh milk and simmer in a steam bath until the product has evaporated to half of the original volume. Cool, strain and take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day 30 minutes before meals. Treatment course - 2 liters of infusion. Take a break for 3 weeks and repeat the course. (Stomach cancer).

- 1 cup of crushed sunflower roots pour 1l hot water and boil over low heat for 1 hour (the product should be reduced by almost half). The finished broth should have a dark saturated color. In the resulting broth, moisten gauze folded in several layers and apply to the diseased joint. Put cellophane on top of the compress, then cotton wool and fix the compress with a warm scarf. The procedure is preferably carried out at night. (joints).

- 3 cups of dried sunflower roots pour 3 liters of water and boil water in enamelware. Let it brew for 3 hours, strain and take 1 liter per day. (Prostate adenoma).

- Pour 1 part of the crushed stem with 8 parts of vodka and put in a dark place for 9 days, shaking occasionally. Strain and take 3 tablespoons on an empty stomach for 3 days. (Malaria, fever).

The fields with sunflowers look amazingly beautiful - plants whose inflorescences look like the sun from children's pictures. This golden yellow miracle is not only gorgeous in its own way. appearance, it is also very useful.

In this article we will talk about what a sunflower is. This is an annual or perennial plant, in what conditions it grows, what species and varieties are, you will learn by reading it.

Production history sunflower oil began in England at the end of the eighteenth century. Since then, various varieties of sunflower have been bred, which are united by high resistance to various pests and diseases.

General information

Annual sunflower is the most important in the world. Responsive and grateful to the applied agronomic technologies, it is very useful and fertile. It is not for nothing that in heraldry the sunflower flower symbolizes prosperity and fertility. In addition, a plant surprisingly similar to the sun in any weather in any area creates a bright and warm atmosphere.

Sunflower is grown in almost all fertile agricultural zones as a raw material for the production of high-quality vegetable oil. It is also used as honey, medicinal and ornamental plant.

It turns out that there is another unusual variety of it - tuberous sunflower. It is considered a vegetable crop.

Description

Annual sunflower (composite family) - a plant with a good root system, relatively quickly developing deep into the soil up to 140 cm (and in special conditions - up to 5 meters), and up to 120 cm wide. The woody stem of the plant is high (reaches in places and 4 meters), covered with hairs. Oval heart-shaped leaves are large, with pointed tips.

Sunflower inflorescence is a multi-flowered basket (for oil-bearing forms with a diameter of 15-20 cm) with a slightly convex or flat disc. large flowers located along the edges - asexual, reed, yellow-orange in color, and the median ones completely cover the receptacle - bisexual, tubular, much smaller.

And a huge variety of seeds has a ripened sunflower. An annual has an achene-fruit, consisting of a nucleus and a shell. contain an average of 22-27% oil, and the most the best varieties- 46% and more. One basket, depending on the variety and nature of sunflower care, has from 200 to 7000 seeds.

Has excellent medicinal properties(astringent, anti-inflammatory, etc.) annual sunflower. Flower formula: *L(5)T(5)P1.

Sunflower in Russia

Sunflower - typical plant steppe and forest-steppe zones with any climatic conditions. Approximately 70% of all crops in the world are concentrated throughout Russia. This plant is the main oilseed crop cultivated in Russia. Edible and industrial oil is produced from its seeds in the country.

The remains of processing also do not disappear: cake is used in the preparation of feed for farm animals; potash is obtained from the ashes from the stems, as well as fertilizer; the tallest varieties (up to 3-4 m) with a huge green mass are cultivated as a silage crop.

cultural history

The plant is native to southern North America. Annual sunflower was brought to Russia in the 18th century already from the countries Western Europe. Initially, it was grown as an ornamental plant, but later sunflower seeds began to be used as a delicacy, in connection with which they began to grow it more and more in gardens and orchards.

It is known that the cultivation of sunflower as an oilseed plant in the field culture is associated with the name of the peasant-serf Bokarev, who first developed oil from it in 1835.

The sunflower culture was originally widespread especially in Voronezh and Saratov, and then appeared in other Russian regions.

Forms of annual cultivated sunflower are divided into 3 groups:

• gnaw, having large achenes with a small core, and therefore they have a low oil content. There is no shell layer in the pericarp of such a sunflower, therefore given plant relatively easily damaged by sunflower moth caterpillars;

• oilseeds have smaller achenes with a shell layer in the pericarp;

• mezheumki representing transitional forms between oil-bearing and nibbling varieties.

In Russia, varieties of oilseed sunflower are of the greatest production interest.

About sunflower varieties

Annual sunflower has a wide variety of varieties cultivated in our time, fully meeting the requirements of existing production.

There are varieties of early-ripening and mid-ripening. There are also decorative, widely used to decorate garden and park areas. Below is a summary of some of the most common sunflower varieties in cultivation.

Early ripe varieties

Sunflower Albatross is distinguished by its rather high oil content. The variety is drought-resistant, resistant to diseases and damage from pests. It responds well to extensive cultivation methods. This variety grows up to 195 cm in height.

Buzuluk contains 54% oil in seeds. Quite a drought-resistant variety and has a stable yield in different climatic conditions. Requires fertilizing with fertilizers and high-quality agricultural technology. Its height reaches 168 cm.

Mid-season varieties

Variety Flagman is characterized by large harvest volumes. The oil content in it is 55%. Quite a tall plant, reaching 206 cm.

Favorite also has a high oil content - 53%. The variety is also distinguished by its resistance to hydrolytic oil breakdown, and therefore the resulting raw material has a low acid number. The plant grows up to 200 cm in height.

The highly productive variety Master contains 54% oil in seeds. It responds gratefully to the application of appropriate mineral fertilizers.

All listed varieties are highly tolerant to Phomopsis, resistant to broomrape, sunflower moth and powdery downy mildew.

A little about tuberous sunflower (Jerusalem artichoke)

This species is grown as a fodder, technical or ornamental crop. The plant grows well in more southern climatic zones. This is due to the fact that its ripening occurs only from September to November, depending on the variety. The yield of Jerusalem artichoke is up to 35 tons of ripe tubers per hectare.

There is another plant obtained by crossing - Jerusalem artichoke. Such a sunflower has large oval tubers.

Sunflower cultivation: conditions

The plant is demanding on soils, the best of which for it are sandy loamy chernozems, loamy, and rich in various nutrients. Sandy soils are unsuitable. Excellent predecessors for sunflower are spring barley, corn and legumes. Again, in the same place, sunflower is sown no earlier than after 7-9 years. It is not at all worth sowing it at the place of cultivation in the past year of root crops, Jerusalem artichoke, perennial herbs, namely after crops that have common diseases.

Sunflower responds well to fertilization. by the most dangerous pests for the plant are wireworms, beetle, thorn beetle, sunflower barbel. Against pests and diseases ( white rot and rust) apply different ways: agrotechnical, chemical, mechanical.

Sowing

How is an annual sunflower cultivated? Growing from seeds right in open ground- the main way. You can plant and pre-prepared seedlings.

For sowing, seeds of zoned varieties with a fairly high germination rate and good ones are used, as a rule, they should be calibrated, because it is exactly the same in size that sprout evenly and amicably, and this increases the yield.

Be sure to sow sunflower seeds after warming up the soil to +10 ... +12 ° C, otherwise there will be a decrease in seed yield.

It's curious

The annual sunflower is grown all over the world. But the sunflower is a truly Russian plant, and this is also recognized abroad. An integral part of rural landscapes are these yellow flowers with black seeds located in the center.

The German amusement park Europa-Park (the largest in Germany and the second largest in Europe in terms of the number of visitors) has a Russian zone where sunflowers grow. And in Berlin, in one of its districts, the “Sunflower Labyrinth” is arranged in the summer: a sunflower field with intricate paths. In Austria, there is a sunflower park with these plants, and the most different types and varieties.

Conclusion

Vast fields covered with blooming golden sunflowers look picturesque, bright and cheerful even in inclement weather. Those who want to decorate their household plot and to create the same bright, cozy and cheerful atmosphere, you can use beautiful decorative annual sunflowers.

They have surprisingly fluffy yellow flowers, in which the seeds are almost invisible. Even their varieties have pleasant soft names: Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, Bear, Teddy Bear. Indeed, the flower is a neat golden ball, more like a fur pom-pom. Such bear sunflowers look quite impressive in flower beds and bloom for a long time.

This cute unpretentious flower with bright yellow petals will bring more light, freshness and lots of solar energy to the garden.

Instructions for use:

Sunflower (butter or annual sunflower) – annual plant family Astrov, has a thick stem with one or more heads, and can reach a height of 4 meters. A single head in diameter can reach 50 cm, its marginal petals are yellow, in the middle they are orange. The sunflower fruit is a four-sided achene. It is known that 100 grams of roasted sunflower seeds contain more than 20 grams of protein, 3.4 grams of carbohydrates and 52 grams of fat.

Sunflower was imported from Northern and South America, is now grown almost all over the world for the production of sunflower oil. This plant also has medicinal properties, but not everyone knows about the benefits of sunflower.

Useful properties of sunflower

This plant has healing properties, it is used to improve digestion, as an expectorant, and also to reduce body temperature during infectious processes.

In folk medicine, leaves, marginal flowers, stems and even sunflower roots are used. The leaves and flowers contain flavonoids (quercimerythrin), betaine, choline, carotene (provitamin A), sterols and others. useful material. In addition, the leaves of the plant are rich in resins and rubber. Sunflower seeds contain oil and fatty acids (linolenic, lignoceric and oleic).

The leaves are collected separately, and only those that are whole and not spoiled by insects are selected. They are torn off the trunk and dried on fresh air in a dark place. Sunflower flowers are harvested at the beginning of flowering, and also dried in a shady place. Harvested raw materials are stored in linen or paper bags.

The use of sunflower in traditional medicine

The healing properties of sunflower are used for jaundice, gallbladder diseases (chronic cholecystitis, dyskinesia), respiratory system diseases, infectious diseases (flu, malaria, etc.) and many other ailments.

A decoction of the middle flowers is used for jaundice, liver and biliary tract diseases, intestinal dyskinesia, and bronchial asthma. Alcohol tincture of reed flowers and sunflower leaves helps with fever (due to influenza, acute respiratory infections, malaria) and neuralgia various origins. Also alcohol tincture The leaves are used to improve appetite.

A decoction of sunflower leaves is an excellent diuretic (diuretic) remedy, and also helps with diarrhea.

Sunflower seed oil can be used to prevent atherosclerosis, as it is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, which prevent the formation of atherosclerotic plaques on the vascular endothelium. In addition, it is used as a laxative. Boiled sunflower oil helps as a wound healing agent for wounds and burns (oil dressings). It can also be used in oil inhalations in the treatment of bronchitis, pneumonia.

The benefits of sunflower are used for arthritis and arthrosis of various etiologies. The "hat" of this plant has healing properties, and an oil extract is made from it, which is used for external rubbing of the area of ​​\u200b\u200bdiseased joints.

Sunflower roots are used to "remove salts" in urolithiasis, gout. Tea is made from the roots: 1 cup of crushed roots should be poured with 3 liters of water and boiled for 1-2 minutes. All tea should be consumed within 2-3 days. The whole process of removing salts takes 1-2 months, while spicy seasonings, pickles, vinegar and smoked foods should be abandoned.

The healing properties of sunflower can also be used for herpes. To do this, it is necessary to wash and scald the petal of a sunflower with boiling water and fix it with a plaster at the site of the rash. You need to change the petal every 2-3 hours.

With increased nervous excitability, the following recipe is used: 3 tablespoons of dried sunflower flowers should be poured over 250 ml of vodka. Insist for a week in a dark place, then strain and take 40 drops (per 50 ml of water) twice a day before meals.

The benefits of sunflower can also be useful for psoriasis. For this, an oil tincture is used, which is prepared in the following way: place dried petals in liter jar(up to 2/3 volume) and pour vodka. Infuse for 21 days in a dark place, stirring occasionally. The finished tincture should be dark brown and oily. She wipes psoriatic rashes on the skin during an exacerbation of the disease.

In addition, an oily tincture of sunflower petals can be used for colds. For this purpose, it should be used 1 tablespoon 3 times a day. In children under 7 years of age, this tincture is not used, children over this age are given ½ teaspoon three times a day. When treating a cold, sunflower tincture should be used for no more than 3 days.

Sunflower is younger brother heavenly sun, but lives on earth. On a warm, clear day, the sunflower always raises its beautiful head up. His smiling dark face is surrounded by a dense wreath of bright yellow petals, smooth and delicate to the touch. But the trunk and leaves in a sunflower are covered with small, small spines, they can be very scratched. As the sunflower matures, its petals lose color and become hard and dry. But seeds ripen in it, which we eat with pleasure or make oil out of them.

Sunflower description in artistic style

Sunflower - tall plant with hard stem. It has dark green leaves attached to it. big size. The plant blooms in summer. There are inflorescences on one stem. In the center is a round middle of tubular flowers. They are dark brown. On both sides of the basket are large reed flowers. It is they who resemble the orange sun. Even the name of the flower is consonant with this similarity.
In summer, one often sees a golden carpet of blooming sunflowers in the endless fields. This is an amazingly beautiful picture.

Description of a sunflower for children

The king of the fields in summer is the sunflower. This is the messenger of the sun. You can find it everywhere: in the field, in the garden, in the yard.

Sunflower is perhaps the only flower that combines beauty and benefit. Smooth, tall, with a sadly tilted to the side bright yellow head. And if you look under the petals, you can see black cells. It is these small cells that bring so much benefit to a person.

Sunflowers have risen above the ground, with their gentle flame they warm, inspire, lift you up.

Description of sunflower in scientific style

Sunflower is an annual plant 2-4 m high, with a well-developed taproot and action roots that penetrate the soil to a depth of 2-3 m. The stems are covered with stiff hairs, rough, filled with a spongy core. Leaves with serrated edges, on long petioles, densely pubescent with hard hairs. The stems end in inflorescences (baskets) with a diameter of 15 to 45 cm. Numerous flowers are placed in circles on the receptacle.

sunflower pollination occurs with the help of insects.
The fruit is a seed with a woody fruit coat. The achene is filled with the kernel, which does not fuse with the shell. The shell of the fetus is covered on top with an epidermis painted in white, gray, black, black-violet, brown or other colors.
Sunflower plants are cold and drought resistant. The annual sunflower is native to North America.

Sunflower annual is grown almost all over the world. First of all - for the production of sunflower oil from seeds, which is then used for cooking and for technical needs.

Description of the artwork «Vase with twelve sunflowers» V. Gogh

The painting "Sunflowers" is calling card works of Vincent van Gogh - an outstanding Dutch painter of the post-impressionist era. The artist idolized this flower, considered it a symbol of appreciation and gratitude. The color yellow itself was associated with friendship and hope.

A somewhat rough-looking peasant vase, in which sunflowers stand, gives the impression of being disproportionately small and fragile in comparison with the huge flowers. The sunflowers themselves are not only small in a vase - they lack the space of the entire canvas. The inflorescences and leaves of sunflowers rest against the edges of the picture, as if discontentedly “recoiling” from the frame. The artist applies paints in a very thick layer (impasto technique), squeezing them directly from the tube onto the canvas. On the canvas are clearly visible traces of the touch of the brush and special knife. The relief rough surface of the picture is, as it were, a cast of violent feelings that took possession of the artist at the moment of creation. Sunflowers, painted with energetic moving strokes, give the impression of being alive - heavy, filled with inner strength inflorescences and elastic flexible stems are in constant motion, pulsing, swelling, growing, ripening and withering before the eyes of the viewer.

Still lifes with sunflowers shine in all shades yellow color- The colors of the sun. The artist's idea is clear: to achieve the effect of sunshine, yellow glow.

Van Gogh was gifted with the ability to feel color with extraordinary sharpness. He associated each color shade with a whole set of images and concepts, thoughts and feelings. Each stroke on the canvas had the power of a spoken word. Van Gogh's favorite yellow color was the embodiment of joy, kindness, benevolence, energy, fertility of the earth and life-giving warmth of the sun. And brighter than the sun itself, sunflowers shine on the canvas, as if absorbing the light of its hot rays and radiating it into the surrounding space.

Many see in the painting with sunflowers a reflection of the mental disorder that the artist is known to have suffered from. From the canvas, sunflowers look at the viewer, literally pulling him into their magical world, in which chaos and confusion reign. It is no coincidence that there is a desire to correct their position in the vase in order to bring some order. The image, simple in concept, due to the abundance of bright yellow color literally eats into the mind, striking with its overflowing emotionality...

"Sunflowers" by Vincent van Gogh are a symbol of our beautiful and at the same time tragic life, its quintessence. Flowers that bloom and wither; living beings that are born, mature and grow old; stars that light up, blaze and go out; - all this is an image of the Universe, which is in a state of relentless circulation.