''Cirsium neomexicanum'' is a
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
n species of
thistle known by the common names New Mexico thistle, powderpuff thistle, lavender thistle, foss thistle and desert thistle.
This plant is native to the
southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, Ne ...
and northwestern
Mexico, particularly the
Mojave and
Sonoran Deserts. It has been found in
California,
Nevada,
Arizona,
Sonora
Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...
,
Utah,
Colorado,
New Mexico, and
Texas.
Description
''Cirsium neomexicanum'' is a tall plant, routinely exceeding in height. It erects a stem which may have webby fibers and long, stiff spines. The sparse leaves are greenish-gray, hairy, and very spiny.
[
Atop the mainly naked stems are inflorescences of one or more large ]flower heads
A pseudanthium (Greek for "false flower"; ) is an inflorescence that resembles a flower. The word is sometimes used for other structures that are neither a true flower nor a true inflorescence. Examples of pseudanthia include flower heads, compos ...
with rounded bases and phyllaries covered in long, curving spines. The largest heads may be up to 5 centimeters (2 inches) in diameter. They are packed with white or lavender to pink disc florets but no ray florets.achene
An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not ope ...
with a long pappus which may reach 2 cm long. Unlike many other thistles, this species tends not to be a troublesome noxious weed
A noxious weed, harmful weed or injurious weed is a weed that has been designated by an agricultural or other governing authority as a plant that is injurious to agricultural or horticultural crops, natural habitats or ecosystems, or humans or liv ...
.[Flora of North America, Desert or New Mexico thistle, ''Cirsium neomexicanum'' A. Gray]
/ref>
References
External links
*
photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Utah, isotype of ''Cirsium utahense'' (synonym of ''C. neomexicanum'')Jepson Manual Treatment of ''Cirsium neomexicanum''
*
neomexicanum
North American desert flora
Flora of the Southwestern United States
Flora of Sonora
Plants described in 1853
{{Cynareae-stub