Western Sunflower
Helianthus occidentalis
Western sunflower is unusual for its near-leafless flowering stalks rising from a basal rosette, lifting yellow daisies above dry prairies and glades. A tidy, drought-hardy sunflower for lean soils.
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Type
- wildflower
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 2–4 ft
- Spacing
- 1.5–2 ft apart
- Light
- sun
- Soil moisture
- dry
- Soil pH
- acidic, alkaline, neutral
- Bloom
- June, July, August, September, October, November
- Bloom colors
- yellow
- Wildlife value
- songbirds, larval host
- Caterpillar hosts
- ~58 butterfly & moth species
- Landscape uses
- naturalizing
- Native states
- AL, AR, DC, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NJ, OH, TN, TX, VA, WI, WV
Related native plants
More Helianthus species
- Maximilian Sunflower (Helianthus maximiliani)
- Beach Sunflower (Helianthus debilis)
- Swamp Sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius)
- Ashy Sunflower (Helianthus mollis)
- Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
- Prairie Sunflower (Helianthus petiolaris)