Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Campanulids: Asterales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Cirsium discolor
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Field Thistle at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cirsium discolor
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21 (2006)
Cirsium discolor
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-25-005:
Carduus discolor FAMILY Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Cirsium discolor
COMMON NAME:
Field Thistle
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_cidi_001_lvd
)
Stephanie C. Brundage scb_082021hayesville11
August Clay County NC
Clay County Native Botanical Garden
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_983
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Pollinator at work.
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_984
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_986
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Uppermost leaves just below the head, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_988
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Involucres, from 1-1.5" long, have middle & outer bracts tipped with a spine, per Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005).
COMPARE
involucral bracts of Thistles
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_995
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm120920_996
September Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Stem leafy, hairy, without wings, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_cirsium_discolor_6
September
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_cirsium_discolor_8
September
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_387
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_392
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Leaves villous to scabrous above, white tomentose beneath, margins revolute, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Cirsium discolor
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cirsium discolor
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21
Cirsium discolor
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-25-005:
Carduus discolor
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Cirsium discolor
2547
Forb
Biennial
Habitat: Pastures, woodlands, thickets, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in NC Mountains, uncommon in GA Mountains (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
IS THE PLANT "ARMED"?
Leaf margins spiny
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Disc: Purplish-lavender
Rays: Absent
Inferior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Achene
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p393
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p284
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p333
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p185
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".