Cirsium horridulum explained
Cirsium horridulum, called bristly thistle, purple thistle, or yellow thistle is a North American species of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae. It is an annual or biennial.[1] The species is native to the eastern and southern United States from New England to Florida, Texas, and Oklahoma as well as to Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and the Bahamas.[2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
Thomas Nuttall (1786-1859) described var. megacanthum as "one of the most terribly armed plants in the genus."[7] [8]
Cirsium horridulum is a biennial herb up to 250cm (100inches) tall, with a large taproot and fleshy side roots that sometimes sprout new shoots. Leaves are up to long with thick, sharp spines along the edges. There are usually several flower heads, also with sharp spines, Luma apiculata each head with disc florets but no ray florets. Flower color varies from one plant to the next: white, yellow, pink, red or purple.
- Varieties[9]
Conservation status in the United States
It is endangered in Connecticut,[10] New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania. It is listed as threatened in Rhode Island.[11]
As a noxious weed
The Cirsium genus is listed as a noxious weed in Arkansas and Iowa.[12]
The Houma people make an infusion of the leaves and root of the plant in whiskey. They use it as both as an astringent, and drink it to clear phlegm from lungs and throat. They also eat the tender, white hearts of the plant raw.[13] The Seminole use the spines of the plant as darts for their blowguns.[14]
Ecology
It is a larval host to the little metalmark and the painted lady butterflies.[15] Its flowers are popular for their nectar and pollen with butterflies and bumble bees.[15]
Notes and References
- Web site: Plants Profile for Cirsium horridulum (yellow thistle) . plants.usda.gov . 16 January 2018 . .
- http://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Cirsium%20horridulum.png Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
- Davidse, G., M. Sousa-Peña, S. Knapp & F. Chiang Cabrera. 2015. Asteraceae. 5(2): ined. In G. Davidse, M. Sousa Sánchez, S. Knapp & F. Chiang Cabrera (eds.) Flora Mesoamericana Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México D.F.
- Carnevali, G., J. L. Tapia-Muñoz, R. Duno de Stefano & I. M. Ramírez Morillo. 2010. Flora Ilustrada de la Peninsula Yucatán: Listado Florístico 1–326
- Nelson, C. H. 2008. Cat. Pl. Vasc. Honduras 1–1576. Secretaria de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente, Tegucigalpa
- Nash, D. L. 1976. Tribe IX, Cynareae. En: Nash, D.L. & Williams, L.O. (eds), Flora of Guatemala - Part XII. Fieldiana, Bot. 24(12): 423–428, 590
- Nuttall quoted in Flora of North America, Bigspine thistle, Cirsium horridulum Michaux var. megacanthum (Nuttall) D. J. Keil
- https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/36318142#page/443/mode/1up Nuttall, Thomas 1841. Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, new series 7: 421
- http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=250066376 Flora of North America, Bristly or horrid or yellow or bull thistle, Cirsium horridulum Michaux, Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 90. 1803.
- http://www.ct.gov/deep/lib/deep/wildlife/pdf_files/nongame/ets15.pdf "Connecticut's Endangered, Threatened and Special Concern Species 2015"
- Web site: Plants Profile for Cirsium horridulum (yellow thistle) . plants.usda.gov . 16 January 2018 . .
- Web site: Plants Profile for Cirsium horridulum (yellow thistle) . plants.usda.gov . 16 January 2018 . .
- Speck, Frank G., 1941, "A List of Plant Curatives Obtained From the Houma Indians of Louisiana", Primitive Man 14:49-75, page 57
- Sturtevant, William, 1954, The Mikasuki Seminole: Medical Beliefs and Practices, Yale University, PhD Thesis, page 507
- The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
