Italian Thistle

Carduus pycnocephalus

"Carduus pycnocephalus", with common names including Italian thistle, Italian plumeless thistle, and Plymouth thistle, is a species of thistle. It is native to: the Mediterranean region in southern Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia; East Europe and the Caucasus; and the Indian Subcontinent.
Italian thistle - Carduus pycnocephalus Introduced to Australia. Australia,Carduus pycnocephalus,Eamw flora,Geotagged,Italian Thistle,Marionvale,Spring,Victoria

Appearance

A winter annual, "Carduus pycnocephalus" stems range from 8 inches to 6.6 feet, and are glabrous to slightly wooly. The multiple stems are winged with spines.

The plant grows in a rosettes of 10–14 inches in diameter, with four to ten lobed basal leaves that are 4–6 inches long. Cauline leaves are tomentose on the underside and contain spines on the lobe tips.

Flower heads are 2-5 per cluster, densely matted with cobwebby hairs at the base of the phyllaries and spiny towards the tips. Corollas are pink to purple, approx..4-.6 in long, and the fruits are brown to gold, with a bristly, minutely barbed pappus.
Italian thistle - Carduus pycnocephalus Australia,Carduus pycnocephalus,Eamw flora,Geotagged,Spring

Status

The plant has become an introduced species in other regions, and on other continents, often becoming a noxious weed or invasive species.

References:

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Taxonomy
KingdomPlantae
DivisionAngiosperms
ClassEudicots
OrderAsterales
FamilyAsteraceae
GenusCarduus
SpeciesC. pycnocephalus
Photographed in
Australia