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Asteraceae
Mountain Thistle
Cirsium scopulorum
Defiance and nobility.
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Genus
- Cirsium
- Native to
- Western United States
- Bloom season
- Summer
- Type
- herbaceous
- Height
- 1-3 ft
- Sunlight
- full sun
- Soil
- well-drained, rocky
- Water
- low to moderate
- Hardiness
- 4-8
- Lifespan
- perennial
Did you know
- Mountain thistle grows in alpine meadows and rocky slopes at elevations up to 12,000 feet in the Rocky Mountains.
- The fluffy thistle seeds are carried on silky parachutes that can travel miles on mountain winds.
- Native thistles like this species are important food sources for goldfinches, which eat the seeds and line their nests with the down.
- Unlike invasive thistles, native mountain thistles play a vital ecological role in their alpine habitats.
- Bumblebees are the primary pollinators, able to land on the spiny flower heads thanks to their thick, furry bodies.
Color meanings
0
resilience
1
defiance
2
independence