Review: Sunflowers, by Stephen A. Harris

Abstract

Book Review| April 01 2019 Review: Sunflowers, by Stephen A. Harris Sunflowers. By Stephen A. Harris. 2018. Reaktion Books. (ISBN: 9781780239262). 240 pp. Hardcover, $21.42. The American Biology Teacher (2019) 81 (4): 296. https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2019.81.4.296 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Review: Sunflowers, by Stephen A. Harris. The American Biology Teacher 1 April 2019; 81 (4): 296. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2019.81.4.296 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentThe American Biology Teacher Search We may not be in Kansas anymore, but that doesn't keep us from enjoying the striking symbol of the Sunflower State. These gorgeous flowers form crowns on single stems, having been recorded at heights as tall as 7 meters, and the young flower heads are capable of tracking the sun. Sunflowers belong to the world's largest plant family, Asteraceae, which includes dandelions, thistles, daisies, lettuce, and artichokes, and whose members have composite flower heads. The sunflower head consists of a ring of yellow ray flowers surrounding a large cluster of disk flowers, which, in the words of sixteenth-century English herbalist John Gerard, are “set as though a cunning workeman [sic] had of purpose placed them in very good order.” The disk flowers, after pollination, produce the fruits that we call sunflower seeds. An extensive discussion of the variation and taxonomy of the sunflower family over the past few... You do not currently have access to this content.