Centaurea solstitialis L.

  • Authority

    Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

  • Family

    Asteraceae

  • Scientific Name

    Centaurea solstitialis L.

  • Description

    Species Description - Annual or biennial, 2–8 dm, thinly but persistently tomentose, the stem evidently winged by the decurrent lf-bases; basal lvs lyrate or pinnatifid, to 20 × 5 cm, the middle and upper smaller, becoming linear and entire; invol 10–15 mm, broad-based; middle and outer bracts spine-tipped, the larger central spines 11–22 mm; inner bracts with a small hyaline appendage; fls yellow, the marginal ones not enlarged; pappus of the marginal fls wanting, that of the others 3–5 mm; 2n=16. A weed in fields and waste places, native to the Mediterranean region, occasionally found in our range.

  • Common Names

    yellow star-thistle