When time and funding permit, each flower (each plant species) will have its own page, and its own PDF, and eventually its own PPT so that professors and students have plenty of material on Guatemala (and Honduras, etc) to study.
Heliconia adflexa, Coban, Guatemala, Hotel Monja Blanca, FLAAR, by Nicholas Hellmuth
This space is for flowers we have recently found and photographed.
Bibliography on Tithonia diversifolia, Mexican sunflower, botón de oro
General information
According to Hanan, Mondragón and Vibrans (2009) The Mexican Sunflower or Tree Marigold (Tithonia diversifolia) is an herbaceous or robust shrubby plant that can grow up to 4 m tall, erect and branched with tender branches covered with hairs that fade with age. Its leaves are alternate, petiolate up to 20 cm long. Its inflorescences are made up of several large heads, grouped on strong pendulums. The flowers are bright yellow or orange in the shape of a disc. It blooms and bears fruit throughout the year, but mainly in October and November.
It is native to southern Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, such as Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela; it also includes the Antilles. In Guatemala it can be found at heights of 200 m to 2300 m.
Uses
Due to its beauty, it is widely cultivated for ornamental purposes, however, its leaves contain substances with anti-inflammatory effects and there are studies that support its use as a remedy for malaria. Other studies mention its properties to improve soil quality. Hanan, Mondragón and Vibrans (2009) also indicate that it can be used for forage, as a honey plant, for live fences, as green manure and in animal feed.
In our ethnobotanical garden we have observed the blooms of this plant during the month of November, its flowers give off a very pleasant and sweet aroma, similar to honey. If you want to learn more about Tithonia diversifolia you can consult the bibliographic references that we have prepared for you.
Photographed by Nicholas Hellmuth with a Canon EOS 6D camera. Setting: f/11, 1/250, ISO 400 with a 180mm f/0 lens.
Photographed by Nicholas Hellmuth with a Canon EOS 6D camera. Setting: f/11, 1/250, ISO 400 with a 180mm f/0 lens.
PDF, Articles, Books on Tithonia diversifolia
GALLEGO, L. A., MAHECHA, L. and J. ANGULO
2014
Potencial forrajero de Tithonia diversifolia Hemsl. A Gray en la producción de vacas lecheras. Agronomía Mesoamericana. Vol. 25, No. 2. Pages 393-403.
Características botánicas de Tithonia diversifolia (Asterales: Asteraceae= y su uso en la alimentación animal. Boletín Científico, Centro de Museos. Vol. 18, No. 2. Pages 45-58.
Effect of the environment on the secondary metabolic profile of Tithonia diversifolia: a model for environmental metabolomics of plants. Scientific Reports Volume 6, Article number: 29265.
LEZCANO, Y., SOCA, M., OJEDA, F., ROQUE, E., FONTES, D., MONTEJO, I. L., SANTANA, H., MARTÍNEZ, J. and N. CUBILLAS
2012
Caracterización bromatológica de Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray en dos etapas de su ciclo fisiológico. Pastos y forrajes. Vol. 35, No. 3. Pages 275-282.
MORONKOLA, D. O., OGUNWANDE, I. A., WALKER, T. M., SETZER, W. N. and I. O. OYEWOLE
2007
Identification of the main volatile compounds in the leaf and flower of Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl) Gray. Journal of Natural Medicine. No. 61. Pages 63-66.
Tithonia diversifolia (hemsl.) Gray, una planta con potencial para la producción sostenible en el trópico. Agroforestería para la Producción Animal en Latinoamérica. FAO. Pages 217-230.
