''Cirsium setidens'', also known as gondre and Korean thistle, is a

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

in the genus ''

Cirsium ''Cirsium'' is a genus of perennial and biennial flowering plants in the Asteraceae, one of several genera known commonly as thistles. They are more precisely known as plume thistles. These differ from other thistle genera (''Carduus'', '' Sily ...

'' in the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

. It grows naturally in submontane and mountainous area in

Korean peninsula Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

where its young leaves are used as

namul Namul ( ko, 나물) refers to either a variety of edible grass or leaves or seasoned herbal dishes made of them. Wild greens are called ''san-namul'' (, "mountain namul"), and spring vegetables are called ''bom-namul'' (, "spring namul"). On t ...

. In

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

, it is called ''goryeo-eongeongkwi'' (, literally "

Goryeo Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificat ...

thistle Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the planton the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves ...

") and ''gondeure'' ().

Description

''Cirsium setidens'' is a

up to tall. Radical leaves and lower

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

ones become withered when the flowers bloom. Mid cauline leaves are arranged alternately,

ovate Ovate may refer to: * Ovate (egg-shaped) leaves, tepals, or other botanical parts *Ovate, a type of prehistoric stone hand axe *Ovates, one of three ranks of membership in the Welsh Gorsedd *Vates In modern English, the nouns vates () and ova ...

or wide

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular ...

, green, and long, with tapering end, spiny or

even Even may refer to: General * Even (given name), a Norwegian male personal name * Even (surname) * Even (people), an ethnic group from Siberia and Russian Far East ** Even language, a language spoken by the Evens * Odd and Even, a solitaire game w ...

margins, and leafstalks. The upper space of the leaves is hairy, while the underside is usually white-tinged without hair. Upper cauline leaves are smaller, lanceolate with pointy ends, shorter leafstalks, and spiny margin. The roots are erect. Purple

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s bloom from July to October. The capitula are quite large – about in diameter. Each capitulum is on the tip of a branch or the main stem. The involucres are bell-shaped, long and wide, with spider-web-like hair. The involucels, with pointy ends and sticky underside, are arranged in seven rows. The corollas are purple, about long. The fruits are achenes, each long. The

pappi In Asteraceae, the pappus is the modified calyx, the part of an individual floret, that surrounds the base of the corolla tube in flower. It functions as a wind-dispersal mechanism for the seeds. The term is sometimes used for similar s ...

are brown, about long.

Culinary use

A well-known speciality of

Jeongseon Jeongseon (''Jeongseon-gun'') is a county in the province of Gangwon-do, South Korea. It is famous as the hometown of "Jeongseon Arirang," a traditional Korean folksong. It is also the hometown of actor Won Bin and footballer Seol Ki-hyeon. H ...

is ''gondeure-namul-bap'', a type of

made with dried gondre, seasoned with

perilla oil Perilla oil ( ''Deulgireum'') is an edible vegetable oil derived from perilla seeds. Having a distinct nutty aroma and taste, the oil pressed from the toasted perilla seeds is used as a flavor enhancer, condiment, and cooking oil in Korean cuisine ...

, and served over rice. * File:Dried gondre.jpg, Dried gondre as ''

banchan ''Banchan'' (, from Korean: ) or bansang are small side dishes served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. As the Korean language does not distinguish between singular and plural grammatically, the word is used for both one such dish o ...

'' (side dish) File:Gondre.jpg, ''Gondeure-

'' (seasoned gondre side dish) File:Gondrebap_(gondre_rice)_(Cirsium_setidens)_Korean_thistle.jpg, ''Gondeure-

bap BAP or bap may refer to: Food * Bap (bread), a type of bread roll * Bap (rice dish), a Korean food Music * BAP (Basque band), a hardcore punk group (formed 1984) * BAP (German band), a Colognian rock group (formed 1976) * B.A.P (South Korean ban ...

References

setidens Korean vegetables Namul {{Cynareae-stub