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Thistle, Woolly Distaff | Carthamus lanatus

May contain: flower, plant, thistle, and daisy
Photo Credit: Joseph M. DiTomaso
May contain: grass, plant, flower, and daisy
Photo Credit: Joseph M. DiTomaso
May contain: grass, plant, amaranthaceae, and flower
Photo Credit: Joseph M. DiTomaso
May contain: flower, plant, thistle, and daisy
May contain: grass, plant, flower, and daisy
May contain: grass, plant, amaranthaceae, and flower

Winter annual; stems are straw colored and usually covered with loose woolly cobwebby hairs, especially in leaf axils and at the base of flower heads. Yellow flowers; one single flower per stem tip. Narrow leaves with spines; alternating on the stem.

Plant Details

Habitat NotesDisturbed sites, roadsides, pastures, annual grasslands; grows on many soil types.
Mature Height4’