The incredible Safflower and its innumerable uses

Safflower looks like a conflation of Saffron and Sunflower. Traditionally, the crop was grown for its flowers, used for colouring and flavouring foods and making dyes. But for the last fifty years or so, it is being cultivated mainly for its seed, which is used as bird feed and also for extracting edible oil. About 60 countries grow safflower, but over half is produced in India, mainly for the domestic vegetable oil market. Chinese use safflower florets in medicine as a blood herb. Safflower flowers are sometimes used as an adulterant for Saffron and hence referred to as "bastard saffron" or "false saffron". Safflower oil is also used in painting in the place of Linseed oil. The flowers are used as cutflowers and in dry flower arrangements. Tender stems and leaves are edible and the mature stems are used in particle borad making.

Safflower, having innumerable uses has another incredible fact to its credit - it is drought resistant!! It has a strong tap root which enables it to thrive in dry climates. It can be a boon for poor farmers of drought stricken areas, but awareness is the limiting factor. Even people who are familiar with the crop are reluctant to take up safflower, as they are not prepared to take the "pain" of its cultivation. Its leaves are spiny! But the good news is that several non-spiny varieties are now available for cultivation. Solar Petal collectors are also being developed.

I found this crop very interesting and the challenge is that of `knowledge sharing' among different stake holders along the value chain (which is almost non-existant at the moment). Both producers and consumers need to be familiarized with Safflower's production and uses. Herbal tea made out of Safflower petals is very good for health. The dried flowers are also used as a natural textile dye. Natural dyes derived from plants are not widely used in industry but oflate they are gaining significance world wide because of naturality and fashion trends. Now the task is to spread the word across and link farmers and consumers. Even urban people might try this crop on their real estate plots as safflower is very hardy and doesn't require much care. It could very well be the beginning of mainstreaming agriculture.