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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Cirsium arvense''
| image = Thistle with cuckoo spit.jpeg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| genus = ''[[Cirsium]]''
| species = '''''C. arvense'''''
| binomial = ''Cirsium arvense''
| binomial_authority = ([[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]) [[Giovanni Antonio Scopoli|Scop.]]
}}
'''''Cirsium arvense''''', also known as the '''California Thistle''', '''Canada Thistle''', '''Corn Thistle''', '''Creeping Thistle''', '''Cursed Thistle''', '''Green Thistle''', '''Hard Thistle''', '''Perennial Thistle''', '''Prickly Thistle''', '''Small-flowered Thistle''', and '''Way Thistle''', is a very serious [[invasive species]] of the genus ''[[Cirsium]]'', native throughout [[Europe]], [[Asia]] and northern [[Africa]]. This plant is cited as a noxious [[weed]] in several countries; for example [[Brazil]] and the [[United States]]. It is designated an "injurious weed" under the UK Weeds Act 1959[http://www.defra.gov.uk/farm/wildlife/weeds/index.htm].
It is a tall [[herbaceous]] [[perennial plant]], forming an extensive underground [[root]] system that sends up numerous erect stems each spring, reaching 1-2 m tall; the stems often lie partly flat by summer but can stay erect if supported by other vegetation. The [[leaf|leaves]] are very spiny, lobed, up to 15-20 cm long and 2-3 cm broad (smaller on the upper part of the flower stem). The [[inflorescence]] is 1-2 cm diameter, pink-purple, with all the florets of similar form (no division into disc and ray florets). The [[seed]]s are 4-5 mm long, with a downy pappus which assists in wind dispersal.
Creeping Thistle is used as a food plant by the [[Engrailed]], a species of [[moth]].
Several other names have been applied to the species, including Field Thistle, and the very confusing "Canada Thistle" (it is not a native of [[Canada]], being an introduction there).
==Edibility==
''Cirsium'' species, are, for the most part, edible; however, the [[leaf|leaves]] are considered bitter and therefore rendered inedible; the [[taproot]] is considered the most nutritious. In [[Scotland]] (especially [[Fife]]) they are considered a delicacy, albeit a somewhat unusual one.
==External links==
*[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CIAR4 USDA Plants Profile: ''Cirsium arvense'']
{{Wmog|Cirsium arvense}}
[[Category:Asteraceae]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Estonia]]
[[Category:Flora of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Invasive species]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Cirsium arvense''
| image = Thistle with cuckoo spit.jpeg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| genus = ''[[Cirsium]]''
| species = '''''C. arvense'''''
| binomial = ''Cirsium arvense''
| binomial_authority = ([[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]) [[Giovanni Antonio Scopoli|Scop.]]
}}
'''''Cirsium arvense''''', also known as the '''California Thistle''', '''Canada Thistle''', '''Corn Thistle''', '''Creeping Thistle''', '''Cursed Thistle''', '''Green Thistle''', '''Hard Thistle''', '''Perennial Thistle''', '''Prickly Thistle''', '''Small-flowered Thistle''', and '''Way Thistle''', is a very serious [[invasive species]] of the genus ''[[Cirsium]]'', native throughout [[Europe]], [[Asia]] and northern [[Africa]]. This plant is cited as a noxious [[weed]] in several countries; for example [[Brazil]] and the [[United States]]. It is designated an "injurious weed" under the UK Weeds Act 1959[http://www.defra.gov.uk/farm/wildlife/weeds/index.htm].
It is a tall [[herbaceous]] [[perennial plant]], forming an extensive underground [[root]] system that sends up numerous erect stems each spring, reaching 1-2 m tall; the stems often lie partly flat by summer but can stay erect if supported by other vegetation. The [[leaf|leaves]] are very spiny, lobed, up to 15-20 cm long and 2-3 cm broad (smaller on the upper part of the flower stem). The [[inflorescence]] is 1-2 cm diameter, pink-purple, with all the florets of similar form (no division into disc and ray florets). The [[seed]]s are 4-5 mm long, with a downy pappus which assists in wind dispersal.
Creeping Thistle is used as a food plant by the [[Engrailed]], a species of [[moth]].
Several other names have been applied to the species, including Field Thistle, and the very confusing "Canada Thistle" (it is not a native of [[Canada]], being an introduction there).
==Edibility==
''Cirsium'' species, are, for the most part, edible; however, the [[leaf|leaves]] are considered bitter and therefore rendered inedible; the [[taproot]] is considered the most nutritious. In [[Scotland]] (especially [[Fife]]) they are considered a delicacy, albeit a somewhat unusual one.
==External links==
*[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CIAR4 USDA Plants Profile: ''Cirsium arvense'']
{{Wmog|Cirsium arvense}}
[[Category:Asteraceae]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Estonia]]
[[Category:Flora of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Invasive species]]
