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The Canada Thistle
A larger, unreduced and only slightly compressed picture of the Canada Thistle - without any apparent loss of picture quality. The original picture was obtained from the Alberta Department of Agriculture.
Canada Thistle (Cirsium arvensis). Does not have the stiff spiny leaves as the "Pasture Thistle" (below), nor as bright a flower. The pale purple flowers grow in flat-topped clusters. This is an introduced plant now found at the Pacific coast and in the Interior. Between 2' - to 5' high.
Closely related thistles, and very similar in appearance:
Pasture Thistle - Bull Thistle (Cirsium lanceolatum). There are over a half-dozen species, about half of them were introduced from Europe. Most have reddish or purplish flowers except the "white thistle" (C. hookerianum). The single purple blossoms on their bristly green burr may be 2" across. Blooming time is July and August.
Indian Thistle - Edible Thistle (Cirsium edule). The "ball" part of the flowers is a white wooly mass with many spines thus forming attractive pedestals for the several rose-purple flowers. The thick stem 2' - 5' high carries leaves to 10" long. These are very ragged and often those near the top are twice lobed. Thin spines provide armament. The plump roots are about 1" long and can be boiled and eaten. The blooming period is from late spring to late summer. Range: Low to high elevations mostly west of the Cascades. An attractive plant of alpine meadows, Garibaldi and Manning Parks, Okanagan.
Wooly Thistle (Cirsium undulatum): Has an overall silvery white colour of leaves and stems and a beautiful display of rose to lavender flower heads. Older plants branch freely and carry single flowers at the tip of each branch. Grows from 2' - 5' high, leaves are to 8" long, deeply cut, and protected by long yellowish spines. Poor dry soils east the Cascades, Similkameen and Okanagan valleys.
All comments are most welcome, and I'll gladly answer any questions you may have. pweis@shaw.ca
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