''Onopordum'', or cottonthistle, is a genus of plants in the tribe

Cardueae The Cardueae are a tribe (biology), tribe of flowering plants in the daisy family (Asteraceae) and the subfamily Carduoideae. Most of them are commonly known as thistles; four of the best known genera are ''Carduus'', ''Cynara'' (containing the ...

within the family

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

. They are native to southern

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, northern

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, the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

, the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, and southwest and central

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. They grow on disturbed land, roadsides, arable land and pastures. They are

biennials A biennial plant is a flowering plant that, generally in a temperate climate, takes two years to complete its biological life cycle. Background In its first year, the biennial plant undergoes primary growth, during which its vegetative structures ...

(rarely short-lived

perennials In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

) with branched, spinose winged stems, growing 0.5–3 m tall. In the first season they form a basal rosette of gray-green

felted A felted material is a hairy or Wikt:filamentous, filamentous (hairy-like) fibre that is densely packed or tangled, forming felt or felt-like structures. Advantages of felted tissue The dermis is described in Gray's Anatomy as "felted connect ...

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

and rarely a few

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

heads. In the second season they grow rapidly to their final height, flowering extensively, and then die off after seed maturation.Flora of China Vol. 20-21 Page 159, 大翅蓟属 da chi ji shu ''Onopordum'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 827. 1753.
/ref> The leaves are dentate or shallowly lobed to compound with several pinnatifid or deeply cut leaflets, and strongly spiny. The terminal flower head is typical for thistles, a semi-spherical to ovoid

capitulum capitulum (plural capitula) may refer to: *the Latin word for chapter ** an index or list of chapters at the head of a gospel manuscript ** a short reading in the Liturgy of the Hours *** derived from which, it is the Latin for the assembly known ...

with purple (seldom white or pink) disc florets. There are no ray florets. The receptacle is glabrous with dentate margins. The tube of the corolla is slender, sac-shaped and symmetrical. The

anther The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s have awl-shaped outgrowths on the top. The capitula have several overlapping rows of leathery basal simple linear-lanceolate spines. These are smooth to slightly pubescent. These plants propagate only by

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

. The seed heads mature in mid-summer, releasing their seeds. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

is a glabrous

achene An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple fruit, simple dry fruits, dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and Dehi ...

, 4–6 mm long and with 4-50 ribs. The pappus consists of many rows of simple, fine to minutely rough hairs, united in a circular base. ''Onopordum'' species are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...

species including '' Coleophora onopordiella'' (feeds exclusively on ''O. acanthium''). In the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

island of

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

a native species called agriagginara (αγριαγγινάρα) or koufoti (κουφωτοί) has its heads (flowers) and tender leaves eaten raw by the locals. ; Species GJ009

* ''

Onopordum acanthium ''Onopordum acanthium'' (cotton thistle, Scotch (or Scottish) thistle) is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to Europe and Western Asia from the Iberian Peninsula east to Kazakhstan, and north to central Scandinavia, and ...

'' L. - Cotton thistle, Scotch thistle, Scotch common-thistle, heraldic thistle, woolly thistle - widespread across Europe and temperate Asia * '' Onopordum acaulon'' L. - Stemless thistle, horse thistle - France, Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia * '' Onopordum alexandrinum'' Boiss. - Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan * '' Onopordum algeriense'' (Munby) Pomel - Algeria * '' Onopordum ambiguum'' Fresen. - Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan * '' Onopordum anatolicum'' (Boiss.) Eig. - Turkey * '' Onopordum arenarium'' M.Hossain & M.A.A.Al-Sarraf - Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya * '' Onopordum armenum'' Grossh. - Caucasus, Iran, Turkey * '' Onopordum blancheanum'' (Eig) Danin - Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon * '' Onopordum boissierianum'' Raab-Straube & Greuter - Turkey * '' Onopordum bracteatum'' Boiss. & Heldr. - Greece, Turkey, Cyprus * '' Onopordum canum'' Eig - Iran, Jordan, Israel, Turkey * '' Onopordum carduchorum'' Bornm. & Beauverd - Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, Iran * '' Onopordum carduelium'' Bolle - Canary Islands * '' Onopordum carduiforme'' Boiss. - Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan * '' Onopordum carmanicum'' (Bornm.) Bornm. - Iran * '' Onopordum caulescens'' d'Urv. - Greece * '' Onopordum cinereum'' Grossh. - Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan * '' Onopordum corymbosum'' Willk. - France, Spain * '' Onopordum cynarocephalum'' Boiss. & Blanche - Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan * '' Onopordum cyrenaicum'' Maire & Weiller - Libya * '' Onopordum dissectum'' Murb. - Spain, Morocco * '' Onopordum dyris'' Maire - Morocco * '' Onopordum elongatum'' Lam. * '' Onopordum eriocephalum'' Rouy - France * '' Onopordum espinae'' Coss. * '' Onopordum heteracanthum'' C.A.Mey. - Caucasus, Lebanon, Turkey, Syria, Palestine, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia * '' Onopordum horridum'' Viv. - Italy * ''

Onopordum illyricum ''Onopordum illyricum'' is a species of thistle known by the common name Illyrian thistle, or Illyrian cottonthistle. It is native to southwestern Europe, but has been introduced into Australia and California, where it has become a noxious weed. ...

'' L. - Illyrian thistle, Illyrian cottonthistle - Mediterranean * '' Onopordum leptolepis'' DC. - from Palestine to Altay + Xinjiang * '' Onopordum macracanthum''

Schousb Peter Schousboe (1766–1832) was a Danish botanist. Biography Peder Kofod Anker Schousboe was born in Rønne, Denmark and died in Tangier, Morocco, having served as Danish consul general in Tangier from 1800 onwards. He conducted a botanic ...

. - Spain, Portugal, Italy, Morocco, Algeria * '' Onopordum macrocanthum'' d'Urv. * '' Onopordum macrocephalum'' Eig - Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan * '' Onopordum mesatlanticum'' Emb. & Maire - Morocco * '' Onopordum micropterum'' Pau - Spain, Canary Islands * '' Onopordum minor'' L. - Iran * '' Onopordum myriacanthum'' Boiss. - Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria * '' Onopordum nervosum'' Boiss. - Moor's cottonthistle - Spain, Portugal * ''

Onopordum parnassicum ''Onopordum'', or cottonthistle, is a genus of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae. They are native to southern Europe, northern Africa, the Canary Islands, the Caucasus, and southwest and central Asia. They grow on disturb ...

'' Boiss. & Heldr. - Greece, Turkey * '' Onopordum platylepis'' (Coss. ex Murb.) Murb. - Libya, Tunisia * '' Onopordum polycephalum'' Boiss. - Turkey * '' Onopordum prjachinii'' Tamamsch. - Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan * '' Onopordum seravschanicum'' Tamamsch. - Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan * '' Onopordum sibthorpianum'' Boiss. & Heldr. - Greece, Sicily, Malta, Turkey, North Macedonia, Saudi Arabia * '' Onopordum tauricum'' Willd. - Turkish thistle, Taurian thistle, Taurus cottonthistle, bull cottonthistle - southern + central Europe, Ukraine, Middle East * '' Onopordum turcicum'' Danin - Turkey * '' Onopordum wallianum'' Maire - Morocco ; Natural hybrids * ''Onopordum'' × ''brevicaule'' (''Onopordum acaulon'' × ''Onopordum acanthium'' ) * ''Onopordum'' × ''erectum'' (''Onopordum nervosum'' ssp. ''castellanum'' × ''Onopordum tauricum'' ssp. ''corymbosum'' ) * ''Onopordum'' × ''macronervosum'' (''Onopordum nervosum'' × ''Onopordum macrocanthum'') * ''Onopordum'' × ''onubense'' (''Onopordum dissectum'' × ''Onopordum macrocanthum'') * ''Onopordum'' × ''spinosissimum'' (''Onopordum illyricum'' × ''Onopordum acanthium'')

Invasive problems

Some species of ''Onopordum'' have been introduced as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

s in the temperate regions of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, where they have become naturalised in the wild. In most of these countries, these thistles are considered noxious

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, growing where it conflicts with human preferences, needs, or goals.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. Pla ...

s, especially in Australia where a biological control program has been set up (using the Rosette Crown

Weevil Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small – less than in length – and herbivorous. Approximately 97,000 species of weevils are known. They belong to several fa ...

, '' Trichosirocalus briesei''). In North America, there are also ''Trichosirocalus'' control programs, but they have proved detrimental to native thistles.

References

* Briese, D.T., Lane, D., Hyde-Wyatt, B.H., Crocker, J., Diver, R.G. (1990). Distribution of thistles of the genus ''Onopordum'' in Australia. Plant Protection Quarterly 5: 23–27. {{Authority control Asteraceae genera