Thistle like
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117. Mexican poppy Argenome ochroleuca |
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A robust annual herb, usually with prickly stems containing latex and growing 60 to 120 cm high. Basal rosette leaves and stem leaves are blue-green to grey-green and blotched with white. The edges are spiny-toothed. Flowers are very pale yellow. Seed capsules are prickly and full of small, round, brown seeds which are shed through small holes near the top of the capsule. The similar A. mexicana has greener leaves and bright yellow flowers. Mexican Poppy is found in all districts and is common on fallow and waste land and around stockyards.
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118. Spear thistle Cirsium vulgare |
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A robust, spiny annual growing to about 1 m and occasionally to 2 m. Its stems are erect with spiny wings. Leaves are alternate, dark green above and clothed with cottony hairs beneath. They are lobed with the lobes and leaf tips ending in long sharp spines. Flowers are purple and in compact heads at the ends of branches. The heads are surrounded by spiny bracts, the whole being 5 to 7.5 cm across. Spear Thistle is widespread, favouring the southern areas. It a relatively minor weed of cane fields but can be a serious pest in pastures. Also commonly called Scotch Thistle.
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119. Emilia Emilia sonchifolia |
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A bluish-green annual herb growing to about 60 cm tall. It has thistle-like leaves which are alternate and divided into segments. These are variable in shape but often with a large, rounded end lobe. They are up to 12 cm long and 4 cm wide. The upper leaves are smaller, pointed and often without lobes. Flower heads are purple-topped, green cylinders, about 1 cm long and 0.5 cm across, which have no petals and are carried on slender, branched flower stalks at the top of the plant. Seeds are fine, about 3 mm long, pale brown and have a tuft of soft, white, fine hairs. Emilia is widespread and common. It is a weed of disturbed ground, roadways and infrequently mowed areas. |
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120. Rough sow thistle Sonchus asper |
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An erect, annual plant with milky sap. Leaves and stems are bluish-green. The leaves are crowded towards the bottom of the stem, sometimes forming a basal rosette. They are stiff with edges deeply divided into broad irregular lobes and have sharp, stiff spines. The end lobe is triangular and spade-shaped. Flowering stems are stout, erect, hollow and slightly angular with leaves scattered along them. Flowers are in irregular groups, each about 18 mm long, constricted above the base and with a tuft of yellow florets at the tip. Seeds are small, light, with white parachutes of thistle-down. Rough Sow Thistle is widespread and common but favours the southern districts. The spines on mature and dead plants can make the handling of infested cane planting material unpleasant. |
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121. Sow thistle Sonchus oleraceus |
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An erect, annual plant with milky sap. Leaves and stems are bluish-green. The leaves are crowded towards the bottom of the stem, sometimes forming a basal rosette. They are soft and smooth with edges deeply divided into broad irregular lobes and have small, soft spines. The end lobe is triangular and spade-shaped. Flowering stems are stout, erect, hollow and slightly angular with leaves scattered along them. Flowers are in irregular groups, each about 18 mm long, constricted above the base and with a tuft of bright yellow florets at the tip. Seeds are small, light, with white parachutes of thistle-down. Sow Thistle is widespread and common but favours the southern districts. It can be abundant during winter and spring following cultivation. Also commonly called Milk Thistle. |
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