SAFLOR "SUNNY" / CARHAMUS TINCTORIUS L.
Safflower is a thermophilic and very drought-resistant plant of a short day, well adapted to a dry continental climate, belongs to the Aster family, and does not occur in the wild. Safflower is especially demanding for warmth during the flowering and ripening phases. At the same time, its seedlings can withstand up to 5-6 ° C.
The root of safflower is taproot, highly branched, penetrates to a depth of 2 m. The stem is erect, branched, glabrous, up to 90 cm high. The leaves are sessile, lanceolate, lanceo-oval or elliptical, along the edges with small teeth, often ending in spines. Upward, the leaves decrease in size. Inflorescence - a basket with a diameter of 1.5-3.5 cm. On one plant there are from 5-6 to 30-50 baskets. The flowers are tubular with a five-part corolla of yellow or orange color. The fruit is an achene resembling a sunflower achene. Its shell is hard, hard to split, makes up 40-50% of the mass of seeds.
Information about the cultivation of safflower goes back to ancient times. In the tombs of the Egyptian pharaoh, who ruled the country in the sixteenth century. BC e., found dried flowers of safflower. The name safflower is found in the dictionary of the ancient Sanskrit language. Almost all the botanical diversity of this culture is concentrated in India.
Safflower as a plant known in ancient times to the Greeks and Romans is mentioned by Dioscorides and Pliny.