Hi, last spring I bought a 2 foot plant from a woman at a flea market who said it was a sunflower bush. I planted it and it is now about 10 feet tall. It has very thick and sturdy stems(like bamboo) with roots or runners growing out of the stems that only grow to about 3 inches looking like spikes. As it grows, the lower leaves dry up and die. It just keeps getting taller and taller but still no flowers. I can find no information on this plant. Can anyone help? I live in west central florida. Thanks
This is a guess, but it's possibly Tithonia diversifolia, based on your common name, height and description of the plant. A few sites to investigate: Tithonia diversifolia - from the UCLA Botanical Garden Member Newsletter Atlas of Florida Vascular Plants - Tithonia diversifolia - click on the images tab and the maps tab Pacific Islands Ecosystems at Risk - Tithonia diversifolia - this site contains a list of common names of the plant, which may you want to investigate. Does it sound possible?
Sherri has sent me the following photographs and this message: "attached are a couple of pictures of the sunflower bushes, sorry for the delay but I think you nailed it perfectly. Thanks"
