Wheeler's thistle

Wheeler's Thistle

NPS Photo/Tiffany Zadi

 

Wheeler's Thistle

Cirsium wheeleri

Common Names: Plume Thistle
Family: Asteraceae
Size: Up to 2 feet (60cm) in height
Range: Northern Mexico and Southwestern United States

General Description

A perennial herb in the Sunflower family that is noted for a sharp prickly exterior on both the leaves and stems. These plants have large taproots and the leaves have slender spines. There are one or more flowerheads each with white, pink, or pale purple disc florets but no ray florets.

Other thistle varieties like Musk, Arizona, and Bull thistles can occasionally be seen in the park but are considered uncommon.

Habitat

The plant grows in mountain meadows and open conifer forests and can commonly be seen growing along roadsides.

Plant Lore

The genus name, “Cirsium”, is from the Greek “kirsion” meaning “swollen vein” because this thistle species was used to treat swollen veins. In addition, the word "Calcareum" means “chalky white", or "growing on chalky soil”. Native Americans historically dug up and ate the fleshy roots of the thistle. These plants are important pollinators, especially for monarch butterflies.