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Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterized by leaves with sharp spikes on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the plant – on the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. These prickles protect the plant from herbivores. Typically, an involucre with a clasping shape similar to a cup or urn subtends each of a thistle's flower heads. The typically feathery pappus of a ripe thistle flower is known as thistle-down.
The spininess varies considerably by species. For example, Cirsium heterophyllum has very soft spines while Cirsium spinosissimum is the opposite. Typically, species adapted to dry environments are more spiny.
The term thistle is sometimes taken to mean precisely those plants in the tribe Cardueae (synonym: Cynareae), especially the genera Carduus, Cirsium, and Onopordum. However, plants outside this tribe are sometimes also called thistles.
Biennial thistles are particularly noteworthy for their high wildlife value, producing copious floral resources for pollinators, nourishing seeds for birds like the goldfinch, foliage for butterfly larvae, and down for the lining of birds' nests.
A thistle is the floral emblem of Scotland and Lorraine, as well as the emblem of the Encyclopædia Britannica.
Genera in the Asteraceae with the word thistle often used in their common names include:[citation needed]
Plants in families other than Asteraceae which are sometimes called thistle include:
Thistle flowers are the favorite nectar sources of the pearl-bordered fritillary, small pearl-bordered fritillary, high brown fritillary, and dark green fritillary butterflies. Thistles and thistle-seed feeders provide important sustenance for goldfinches and the flowers are strongly favoured by many butterflies besides fritillaries such as the monarch, skippers, and the various types of tiger swallowtail. Hummingbirds will feed on the flowers of the biennial species, which feature large flowers, as compared with the perennial creeping thistle.[citation needed]
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterized by leaves with sharp spikes on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the plant – on the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. These prickles protect the plant from herbivores. Typically, an involucre with a clasping shape similar to a cup or urn subtends each of a thistle's flower heads. The typically feathery pappus of a ripe thistle flower is known as thistle-down.
The spininess varies considerably by species. For example, Cirsium heterophyllum has very soft spines while Cirsium spinosissimum is the opposite. Typically, species adapted to dry environments are more spiny.
The term thistle is sometimes taken to mean precisely those plants in the tribe Cardueae (synonym: Cynareae), especially the genera Carduus, Cirsium, and Onopordum. However, plants outside this tribe are sometimes also called thistles.
Biennial thistles are particularly noteworthy for their high wildlife value, producing copious floral resources for pollinators, nourishing seeds for birds like the goldfinch, foliage for butterfly larvae, and down for the lining of birds' nests.
A thistle is the floral emblem of Scotland and Lorraine, as well as the emblem of the Encyclopædia Britannica.
Genera in the Asteraceae with the word thistle often used in their common names include:[citation needed]
Plants in families other than Asteraceae which are sometimes called thistle include:
Thistle flowers are the favorite nectar sources of the pearl-bordered fritillary, small pearl-bordered fritillary, high brown fritillary, and dark green fritillary butterflies. Thistles and thistle-seed feeders provide important sustenance for goldfinches and the flowers are strongly favoured by many butterflies besides fritillaries such as the monarch, skippers, and the various types of tiger swallowtail. Hummingbirds will feed on the flowers of the biennial species, which feature large flowers, as compared with the perennial creeping thistle.[citation needed]
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