The Sunflower Family

Compositae is the genus
there are 110 kinds of sunflower, all of them American. Sunflower is a phenomenon of North America.

This crop has become popular worldwide. It started in America about 400 years ago. it probably was first grown on the wild plains in California. Settlers carried the seeds with them and they were commonly scattered along the wagon trails going west.By the 1700's the seed had reached Spain and then France where it was popular.
The crop is a dry land crop and readily grows in the hot, dry Midwestern states. All summer the stalks reach the heavens and it takes a frost to set the plant and get it ready for harvest. Once a frost has occurred, the farmers us combines to gather and cut the head which are taken to drying sheds until the moisture decreases. The seeds are shelled using a centrifugal air machine. The seeds are dropped into an air stream and propelled towards a hard metal plate. They hit the plate with great force and crack open. As the residue drops the husk is lighter and is blown by air to the side and the finished kernels drop into a bin where they are moved on to packaging.