Local Ecotype
Biennial
Full sun to part shade
Moist to medium soil
3-8’ tall
Blooms mid to late summer of 2nd year
Although thistles have acquired a negative reputation due to the plethora of painfully pokey invasive species, this delightful native species is a gentle giant! While it does harbor some slender spines, Tall thistle is much less heavily armed than its invasive brethren. This plant is a biennial, producing a short rosette of leaves the first year and flowering the following year. Its showy pink to purple blossoms bloom from June to August and are visited by bumblebees and butterflies, especially swallowtails. The oily seeds are eaten by many songbirds, particularly goldfinches, which almost exclusively feed nestlings thistle seed and use the cottony fluff atop them to like their nest.
Tall thistle is found in both prairies and woodland. In the garden, it can be grown in full sun to medium shade, with moderate to high moisture. Plants in more open situations tend to be shorter and bushier, while shaded plants may stretch to nearly 8 feet! Plants die after producing seeds, but often reseed themselves.
Local Ecotype
Biennial
Full sun to part shade
Moist to medium soil
3-8’ tall
Blooms mid to late summer of 2nd year
Although thistles have acquired a negative reputation due to the plethora of painfully pokey invasive species, this delightful native species is a gentle giant! While it does harbor some slender spines, Tall thistle is much less heavily armed than its invasive brethren. This plant is a biennial, producing a short rosette of leaves the first year and flowering the following year. Its showy pink to purple blossoms bloom from June to August and are visited by bumblebees and butterflies, especially swallowtails. The oily seeds are eaten by many songbirds, particularly goldfinches, which almost exclusively feed nestlings thistle seed and use the cottony fluff atop them to like their nest.
Tall thistle is found in both prairies and woodland. In the garden, it can be grown in full sun to medium shade, with moderate to high moisture. Plants in more open situations tend to be shorter and bushier, while shaded plants may stretch to nearly 8 feet! Plants die after producing seeds, but often reseed themselves.