Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Campanulids: Asterales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carduus acanthoides ssp. acanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Carduus at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carduus acanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
INCLUDED WITHIN Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Carduus acanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21 (2006)
Carduus acanthoides ssp. acanthoides
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-25-015:
Carduus acanthoides FAMILY Asteraceae__
COMMON NAME:
Plumeless Thistle, Spiny Plumeless-thistle, Broad-winged Thistle
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm0507h_11
July Pocahontas County WV
Roadside
Flower heads short-pedunculate and erect in flower, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm0507h_16
July Pocahontas County WV
Roadside
Plants very spiny, stem tough, per Weakley's Flora.
)
JK Marlow jkm0507h_19b
July Pocahontas County WV
Roadside
Involucres arachnose. Outer involucral bracts erect, inner bracts soft, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
COMPARE
involucral bracts of Thistles
)
Steve Dewey, Utah State University, Bugwood.org bug_1459784
Month Unknown
)
Joseph M. DiTomaso, University of California - Davis, Bugwood.org bug_5374305
Month Unknown
Stems leafy to near apex, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
Joseph M. DiTomaso, University of California - Davis, Bugwood.org bug_5374306
Month Unknown
)
Bruce Ackley, The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org bug_5436746
Month Unknown
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Carduus acanthoides ssp. acanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Carduus acanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
INCLUDED WITHIN
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Carduus acanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21
Carduus acanthoides ssp. acanthoides
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-25-015:
Carduus acanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
2122
Forb
Biennial
Habitat: Disturbed areas, pastures, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: Eurasia
Uncommon in NC Mountains (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
This plant is causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Forest Health Assessment & Applied Sciences Team: New Invaders of the Southeast
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2013
- Mid-Atlantic Exotic Pest Plant Council
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2009
IS THE PLANT "ARMED"?
Leaf margins spiny
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Disc: Purplish
Rays: Absent
Inferior ovary
Bisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Achene
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- New Invaders of the Southeast (Rawlins et al., 2018) p037
- 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".