#common thistle

#CIRSIUM VULGARE - COMMON THISTLE💗

Cirsium vulgare, Asteraceae

Considering I've been living in Scotland for almost 2 years and a half now, this post was long overdue, as the common thistle, or spear thistle, is actually the Scottish national flower and very commonly encountered here, both in nature and as an heraldic symbol.

Although it is generally considered a weed, this thistle is undeniably imposing and eye-catching and is sometimes used as an ornamental plant in gardens, especially when an effort is being put into creating a wildlife-friendly area, where the nectar-rich flowers attract bees and butterflies and the seeds feed small birds. A few cultivars are available in the horticulture market, particularly variegated and white-flowered ones. The plant is also edible, although reportedly quite bland and requiring a lot of work to obtain little food, while the dried flowers can be used as a curdling agent for plant-derived milk.

Wildflowers in Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Top to bottom: Monarda (Bee Balm), Monarda and Purple Coneflower, Yellow Coneflower, and seed of Common Thistle.

Cirsium lanceolatum [now Cirsium vulgare] - Common Thistle

The common thistle is native to most of Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa. It's considered an invasive weed in the United States and Australia, and a "noxious weed" in 9 of the states, meaning there are penalties for intentionally planting it, and active programs to remove what plants they can.

Since the thistle can easily grow in overgrazed fields and bare disturbed ground (such as recently-tilled fields), and is unpalatable to animals, its presence in an area is a bane to local farmers. However, thistle flowers are a favorite of honeybees, and the honey produced is of high quality, even if it's not the same level as white clover flowers. They're also a food source for butterflies, goldfinches, linnets, and greenfinches, on both sides of the Atlantic.