Italian Thistle

Carduus pycnocephalus (common names include Italian thistle, Italian plumeless thistle, slender thistle and Plymouth thistle) is a species of thistle native to the Mediterranean region of Europe and Asia which has become a noxious weed in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, South America, and North America, especially in California, where it is a C-listed weed by the California Department of Agriculture and a Moderate rating by the California Invasive Plant Council. It favors grasslands, woodlands, and chaparral vegetation types, but is especially prevalent in oak woodlands in and around the Central Valley. It is found in disturbed areas, often with basaltic soils, fertile soils, or soils with a relatively high pH (> 6.5) (Bossard et al. 2000).
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