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The Thistle
The thistle is the national flower of Scotland, and features in many Scottish symbols and logos.
Thistles are perennial flowering plants of the genus Cirsium.
They are known for their effusive flowered heads (usually purple, rose, yellow, or white).
The radially symmetrical disk flowers are situated at the end of the branches. They have erect, prickly stems and leaves, with a characteristic focal point at the base of the flower which is particularly spiny.
The leaves are alternate and can be slightly hairy; Their stem wings can be lacking (Cirsium arvensis), conspicuous (Cirsium vulgare), or inconspicuous.
They can spread by seed and rhizome (Cirsium arvensis) or by seed alone.
Their seed has tiny tufts of hair, which can carry them far by wind. Their root system goes very deep. When mowed regularly, they use this to form a rosette of leaves.
Most species are considered weeds, but some are cultivated in gardens for their aesthetic value.
Some common species: Cirsium lanceolatum, Cirsium palustre, Cirsium oleraceum.
Thistle is also a common name for several other genera within Asteraceae, or species within them:
- Arctium – Burdock
- Carduus – Plumeless thistle
- Carlina – Carline thistle
- Cynara – Artichokes
- Echinops – Globethistle
- Onopordum – Cottonthistle
- Silybum – Milk thistle
The word 'Cirsium' derives from the Greek word kirsos, meaning 'swollen vein'. Thistles were used as a remedy against swollen veins.
Article is provided courtesy of Wikipedia.org and distributed under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License.
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