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Photographer: Merel R. Black
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Family Asteraceae
Cirsium altissimum (L.) Spreng.
tall thistle, wood thistle
Cirsium: derived from the Greek kirsion, "a kind of thistle;" also cirsos meaning "a swollen vein" for which thistle was once a remedy
altissimum: Latin for "especially tall"
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| Status: | Native |
| Plant: | erect, (biennial?)/perennial, 3'-10' tall, widely branched, spiny forb |
| Flower: | head up to 1 1/4 wide with pink to purple disk flowers; inflorescence of one to many heads on a somewhat leafy stalk; blooms July-Oct. |
| Fruit: | dry seed on fluffy, feathery-divided pappus |
| Leaf: | large, with spiny teeth or shallow lobes but not divided, underside with dense, whitish fuzz |
| Habitat: | dry to moderate moisture; fields, disturbed sites, open woods |
| Notes: | similar to C. discolor |
| (Glossary) |
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