Safflower – 10 Seeds

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) is a highly branched, herbaceous, thistle-like annual plant in the sunflower family Asteraceae. It is commercially cultivated for vegetable oil extracted from the seeds and was used by the early Spanish colonies along the Rio Grande as a substitute for saffron.

In the same family as sunflower, it is a thistle-like plant with a strong central branch stem and a varying number of branches. Each branch usually has one to five flower heads and each of those heads contains 15 to 20 seeds. Safflower has a taproot system that can penetrate to depths of eight to ten feet, making it more tolerant to drought than small grains.

Common Names: Safflower, Zaffer, Fake Saffron and Dyer’s Saffron.

Safflower Uses

• Its is an edible plant and a culinary herb.
• The tender shoots are used in salads and raw dishes.
• The seeds have a slightly bitter taste, and can be eaten raw or roasted.
• The seeds are high in fats and oils. Safflower seeds are used for oils in cooking.
• Dyes are extracted from its petals, and there are medicinal applications.
• The linoleic acids in safflower seed oil might help prevent “hardening of the arteries,” lower cholesterol, and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Growing Safflower

Indoor Sowing: Not Recommended.

Direct Sowing: Summer.

• The ideal growing requirements are well-drained soils with good water retention, but it will grow in coarse soil with inadequate irrigation or rain. It doesn’t like wet feet, however.
• The seed seeds should be direct sown during November and December after good rains.
• Plant seed 1.5 cm deep in rows that are 15-30.5 cm apart in a prepared firm bed.
• Germination takes place in about one to two weeks.
• Safflower is mature and ready to harvest when most of the leaves have turned brown and the stems are dry, but not brittle. Seeds should rub off freely from the least mature heads.