Nearctica - Eastern Wildflowers - Asteraceae - Tall Thistle (Cirsium altissimum)

Tall Thistle

(Cirsium altissimum)

Color Photograph: North Dakota State University Extension Service.

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

Cirsium discolor

Tall Thistle is easily mistaken for Field Thistle. The leaves of Tall Thistle are not deeply incised as in Field Thistle and the spines are small and weaker.

Cirsium virginianum

Virginia Thistle has narrow, linear leaves, but the upper leaves of the stem do not embrace the flower head.

Tall Thistle (Cirsium altissimum)

Identification: Flower head ovate with an apical spray of rose to lavender florets. Upper leaves small, curled upward, and embracing the flower head. Flower head bracts with pale bristles. Stem naked without spines or spiny plates. Leaves elongate, lanceolate, neither deeply lobed or incised, and woolly white on the underside. Plant 3 to 12 feet in height.

Distribution: Throughout eastern North America, except for New England, and the Plains States.

Habitat: Tall Thistle is found in forests, thickets, and along river banks.

Flowering period: July to October.

Tall Thistle (Cirsium altissimum)

Similar Species:

Field Thistle (Cirsium discolor)

Virginia Thistle (Cirsium virginianum)

Similar Species