italian thistle

Carduus pycnocephalus

Member of plumeless thistles (genus Carduus)
thistles
sunflower family (family Asteraceae)
dicots (class Magnoliopsida)
purple, pale purple, pink in flowering plants

generally 2–5 heads per cluster
involucre 1–2 cm diameter
phyllaries generally ≤ 2 mm wide
phyllary bases ± persistently loosely tomentose
very common throughout the bay area

Chris’s observations: 18 (14 are research grade)

Locations:

Calero CP: 3
Russian Ridge OSP: 3
Coyote Hills RP: 2
Henry Coe SP: 2
Almaden Quicksilver CP
Coyote Lake / Harvey Bear Ranch CP
El Corte de Madera OSP
Monte Bello OSP
Mt. Diablo SP
Sibley Volcanic RP
Sierra Azul OSP
Stevens Creek CP

Months:

Apr.: 4
May: 10
Jun.: 3
Jul.: 0
Aug.: 0
Sep.: 0
Oct.: 0
Nov.: 1

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Taxon info: iNaturalist – Calflora – CalPhotos – Jepson eFlora – FNA

Bay Area species: iNaturalist – Calflora