“Asters, Groundsels, and especially Thistles, afford most familiar examples of a hairy or downy pappus; those of thistles, &c. in autumn sailing about in every breeze.” --Asa Gray, “How Plants Grow”, ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Bull thistle with spikes and pinkish-purple flower - weha/Shutterstock Thistles have a strange beauty, and the native species of ...

I tugged hard on the huge musk thistle with gloved hands, but it wouldn’t budge. I stood and removed the foot-long blade I save for just such occasions and gave the stem a whack near ground level. The ...

Thistles are a marvelous group of plants. Botanists place them all as members of the sunflower (or aster) family, which is a truly gargantuan group with over 20,000 species. The thistles are always ...

“Asters, Groundsels, and especially Thistles, afford most familiar examples of a hairy or downy pappus; those of thistles, especially in autumn, sailing about in every breeze.” John Nelson is a ...

“Asters, Groundsels, and especially Thistles, afford most familiar examples of a hairy or downy pappus; those of thistles, &c. in autumn sailing about in every breeze.” — Asa Gray, “How Plants Grow,” ...

Thistles have reputations as especially prickly plants, and species found in Northcentral Texas and Southwestern Oklahoma are not exceptions. Some cultures and traditions have low regard for thistles.