11 



The general interest in this subject, as has already been intimated, has 

 been evidenced by the hundreds of letters which have been received in 

 the last few years from all parts of the country, making inquiries in 

 regard to the possibility of the economic uses of the plant. The part 

 of the sunflower plant which has the chief value is the seed. The oil ex- 

 pressed from the seed is highly prized as an edible oil, and one which, 

 more nearly than any other known vegetable oil, has the general pro- 

 perties of the oil of the olive. The oil cake left after the extraction of 

 the oil by pressure is extremely rich in nitrogenous matter, and has a 

 food value equal to the cake resulting from the expression of maize oil 

 or linseed oil. In addition to this, it has the advantage of being more 

 palatable, and therefore will be eaten with more avidity than the other 

 oil cakes just mentioned. In some sources of information it is stated 

 that the leaves of the sunflower have been used as a substitute for to- 

 bacco, but it is not probable that the adulteration of tobacco with sun- 

 flower leaves has ever been practiced to any extenf in this country. The 

 branches and stalk of the sunflower, when reduced to a sufficient state 

 of fineness, possess nutritive properties of a high order, and furnish 

 food suitable to the nourishment of many domesticated animals, such 

 as horses, cattle, and sheep. The food values of the different parts of 

 the stalk will be fully illustrated in the analyses given farther on in 

 this bulletin (pp. 18-22, and 27.) Perhaps the most valuable of the 

 products of the sunflower of a manufactured character is the oil, 

 which, by reason of its palatability and sweetness, is well suited for 

 table uses, and for this purpose can replace olive oil with better suc- 

 cess than any other known substitute. 



MEDICINAL USES. 



It is undoubtedly true that the sunflower seed is a valuable food 

 when mixed in proper proportions with other food products. It 

 improves the digestion of the animal, and therefore is beneficial to its 

 health. In fact the seeds are used to a large extent by horsemen and 

 cattlemen for the purpose of keeping animals in excellent physical 

 condition. The supposed efficacy of sunflower seeds for the cure of 

 certain specific diseases (as rheumatism, for instance) is probably 

 largely mythical. 



There is a very prevalent notion that the growth of large quantities 

 of sunflowers in malarial regions prevents the development of diseases 

 of malarial origin. 



Numerous inquiries in regard to the efficacy of the sunflower as 

 a preventive of malaria have been received at the Department of 

 Agriculture within the past few years. Inasmuch as the sunflower is 

 a vigorous grower, absorbing large quantities of moisture, and con- 

 suming, under proper conditions of nitrification and oxidation, large 

 quantities of organic matter, it is possible that the growth of it over 



