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pasture thistle

Photo is of parent taxon
Habit Biennials or monocarpic perennials, 25–100 cm; sometimes perennating by root sprouts. Plants mostly 30–100 cm; branches 3–5+, long.
Roots

usually slender, not or rarely slightly tuberous-thickened.

Stems

erect, villous with septate trichomes and sometimes thinly arachnoid tomentose;

branches 0–few, distal, ascending.

Leaves

blades oblong-elliptic, 5–30+ × 2–10 cm, ± undulate, shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes ovate to broadly triangular, usually separated by broad sinuses, spinose-dentate or lobed, main spines 1.5–7 mm, slender to stout, abaxial faces villous with septate trichomes, at least along veins, sometimes thinly arachnoid, adaxial faces villous with septate trichomes and thinly arachnoid tomentose or subglabrous;

basal often present at flowering, bases tapered;

principal cauline sessile, moderately reduced distally, bases often auriculate-clasping;

distal reduced, similar to proximal.

usually lobed nearly to midveins, sinuses deep, U-shaped, main spines ± stout, 3–7 mm.

Peduncles

0–15+ cm (above distal leaves), leafy-bracted.

Involucres

broadly cylindric to ovoid, 3.5–5 cm, 2.5–3 cm diam. (appearing much wider and hemispheric to campanulate in pressed specimens), loosely arachnoid on phyllary margins or glabrate.

Corollas

pink to purple (white), 40–60 mm, tubes 20–35 mm, throats 11–15 mm, lobes 7–10 mm;

style tips 3–7 mm.

usually 40–45 mm.

Phyllaries

in 8–10 series, imbricate, ovate or lanceolate (outer) to lance-linear (inner), abaxial faces with ± prominent glutinous ridge, outer and middle appressed, apices ascending to spreading, spines 1.5–6 mm;

apices of middle and inner narrowed and scabrid-denticulate, innermost spineless, tapered and entire or with expanded, erose-denticulate, flexuous tips.

outer 3–5 mm wide at base, spines stout, 3–6 mm.

Heads

1–few, borne singly at tips of main stem and branches, often closely subtended by 1–several bracts.

5.5–6 cm.

Cypselae

stramineous to brown, 3.5–5 mm, apical collars yellow or colored like body;

pappi 35–45 mm.

usually 3.5–4 mm.

2n

= 30.

= 30.

Cirsium pumilum

Cirsium pumilum var. pumilum

Phenology Flowering summer (Jun–Sep).
Habitat Fields, pastures, open woods, roadsides
Elevation 0–600 m (0–2000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CT; DE; IA; IL; IN; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON; United States
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[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CT; DE; MA; MD; ME; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; VA; VT; WV
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Flowers of Cirsium pumilum are reportedly sweetly scented.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Variety pumilum grows on the Atlantic coastal plain from Maine to South Carolina and ranges inland to Pennsylvania and Ohio. It is known to hybridize with Cirsium horridulum var. horridulum (R. J. Moore and C. Frankton 1966).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Spines of outer phyllaries stout, 3–6 mm; plants usually with several long branches; leaves usually lobed nearly to the midvein; roots rarely and only slightly tuberous-thickened; cypselae usually 3.5– 4 mm
var. pumilum
1. Spines of outer phyllaries slender, 1.5–3 mm; plants simple or distally with a few short branches; leaves usually shallowly lobed; roots often tuberous-thickened; cypselae usually 4.5–5 mm
var. hillii
Source FNA vol. 19, p. 116. FNA vol. 19, p. 116.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Cardueae > Cirsium Asteraceae > tribe Cardueae > Cirsium > Cirsium pumilum
Sibling taxa
C. altissimum, C. andersonii, C. andrewsii, C. arizonicum, C. arvense, C. barnebyi, C. brevifolium, C. brevistylum, C. canescens, C. carolinianum, C. ciliolatum, C. clavatum, C. crassicaule, C. cymosum, C. discolor, C. douglasii, C. drummondii, C. eatonii, C. edule, C. engelmannii, C. flodmanii, C. foliosum, C. fontinale, C. grahamii, C. helenioides, C. hookerianum, C. horridulum, C. hydrophilum, C. inamoenum, C. joannae, C. kamtschaticum, C. lecontei, C. longistylum, C. mohavense, C. muticum, C. neomexicanum, C. nuttallii, C. occidentale, C. ochrocentrum, C. ownbeyi, C. palustre, C. parryi, C. perplexans, C. pitcheri, C. praeteriens, C. pulcherrimum, C. quercetorum, C. remotifolium, C. repandum, C. rhothophilum, C. rydbergii, C. scariosum, C. texanum, C. tracyi, C. turneri, C. undulatum, C. vinaceum, C. virginianum, C. vulgare, C. wheeleri, C. wrightii
C. pumilum var. hillii
Subordinate taxa
C. pumilum var. hillii, C. pumilum var. pumilum
Synonyms Carduus pumilus C. odoratum
Name authority (Nuttall) Sprengel: Syst. Veg. 3: 375. (1826) unknown
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