I love Helianthus annuus. This plant starts each year form seeds (hence it is an annual) and grows several feet taller than me before it is done. So what took me ~16 years to accomplish, it can do in less than 1. Not only that, it is pretty, iconic, and used for both oil and food. While this species is cultivated all over, it can also grow in roadsides and in places you might not expect to find it. H. annuus was originally cultivated by native americans and is considered native to the continental US, and is in the asteraceae family (aka the sunflower family).
The leaves feel like sandpaper and there are white hairs covering the stem, giving the whole plant a rough feel. Below I have photos of a plant I tracked from when it was young (first photo, top left) and had no stem, to when it is taller than me (last photo, bottom right).
The leaves feel like sandpaper and there are white hairs covering the stem, giving the whole plant a rough feel. Below I have photos of a plant I tracked from when it was young (first photo, top left) and had no stem, to when it is taller than me (last photo, bottom right).