(Bull thistle root is rich in inulin.). The stem is erect, 2 to 3 feet high, branched only in larger plants, furrowed, interruptedly winged. The flowers are pale yellow, in green prickly heads, each scale of the involucre, or covering of the head, ending also in a long, brown bristle. The root is spindle-shaped with tuberous fibres; stem 2 feet high, single, erect, round hairy, leafless above; leaves not decurrent, deeply pinnatifid, fringed with minute prickles; heads generally solitary, large, egg-shaped; florets crimson. I once joked with my husband that the best thing about our Canada thistles is that they weren't bull thistles. This thistle doesn't have the milky striping, and its leaves are hairier than Italian or milk thistle. This plant looks like one should be sceptical to touch, let alone eat it. The roots of this plant are taproots. ---Description---The stem of the Blessed Thistle grows about 2 feet high, is reddish, slender, very much branched and scarcely able to keep upright under the weight of its leaves and flowerheads. This post may contain affiliate links which wont change your price but will share some commission. Three of the most effective natural remedies include cayenne, apple cider vinegar and bull thistle. As a general control, mowing when the plants are in bloom catches them without reserves (all their energy is in the flowers) and knocks back the population. Others use it to help prevent harm to the liver. It's ultra easy to grow, but there's a caveat in many places, milk thistle is considered to be extremely invasive. The Flower Cookbook describes cooking young buds whole. Their edges have small bristle-like teeth. The young stalks, peeled and soaked in water to take off the bitterness, are excellent, and may be eaten either boiled or baked in pies after the manner of Rhubarb, though Gerard says: 'concerning the temperature and virtues of these Thistles we can allege nothing at all.'. They are thin and run deep and can develop several smaller lateral roots. The plant is a deep dull green, the leaves sometimes slightly hoary beneath. ---Description---It is a biennial, flowering in late summer and autumn. The flowers are large and dark crimson in colour, and are in bloom from July to September. Treats snakebites. Thistle Thistle of the Blessed Virgin What is this product used for? Use thistlestem fibers to weave a coarse cloth that can be used as a makeshift canvas. Tagged Under: The flower stem, appearing in the second year, is from 3 inches to 2 feet high, purple, not winged, the leaves on it decreasing in length and increasing in width from bottom to top, strongly veined, spinous and waved at the edges. Common thistle plants like the Musk thistle, bull thistle, distaff thistle, Canada thistle, and scotch thistle grow to a height of between 2ft tall and 9ft tall. Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) Common in Clackamas County, highly invasive, see our weed profile. I use third-party advertising companies to serve ads when you visit this website. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The seeds of the Milk Thistle (Carduus Marianus), known also as Silybum Marianum, have similar properties and uses, and the Cotton Thistle, Melancholy Thistle, etc., have also been employed for like purposes. Bull Thistle Identification Wildlife Uses Thistles as Food Medicinal Use How to Get Rid of Thistles Cirsium arvense Cirsium vulgare Control of Thistles in Pasture Cirsium arvense Range and Identification of Canada Thistle and Bull Thistle Where do thistles grow? In-depth wild edible PDFs. The sweetness of the taproot comes out when roasted. GrowYourMedicine.com is a fact-based public education website published by Grow Your Medicine Features, LLC. (I tried this very strange, mildly sweet, not at all like gum.). Cook young flower stems before serving. In large doses, Blessed Thistle acts as a strong emetic, producing vomiting with little pain and inconvenience. But while most gardeners consider bull thistle as invasive plants, you can use certain types of thistle as a food source, an herbal remedy, and emergency cordage.(h/t toPreppersWill.com). SCABIOUS, FIELD You can also eat older leaves, but as usual they are bitter boiling helps to remove some of the bitterness. Make larger ropes by plaiting long strands of thistle twine. It has sometimes been stated that the herb was first cultivated by Gerard in 1597, but as this book was published twenty years previously it would appear to have been in cultivation much earlier, and in fact it is described and its virtues enumerated in the Herbal of Turner in 1568. KNAPWEED, GREATER A decoction of the whole plant has been used both internally and externally to treat bleeding piles[257]. Click, All listed plants are found in central-east Canada and Creeping vine with sharp-lobed, arrow-shaped leaves. Bull thistle is a weed that can grow in a wide range of environments but prefers disturbed areas. Leaves are hairy on top and bottom, with a more silvery tone on the underside. Bull thistle flower heads are purple and measure 3.5 to 5 cm in diameter, 2.5 to 5 cm long and are usually solitary. The plant was at one time supposed to possess very great virtues against fevers of all kinds. Let the twine thoroughly dry for several days before use. The flowers are in numerous small heads, and are pale purple in colour. (When we first moved here, the place was overrun with thistles. The leaves on Bull thistle have "spiny wings" extending downwards, greenish undersides . And you can upload your plant and other nature photos for help on that front. There is a tradition that the milk-white veins of the leaves originated in the milk of the Virgin which once fell upon a plant of Thistle, hence it was called Our Lady's Thistle, and the Latin name of the species has the same derivation. They form a flat rosette. The flowerheads are borne singly on long stalks, the bracts that form the involucre being quite destitute of prickles. Livestock do not eat it, giving it an advantage over native species. See Medicinal tag key for more information. plants of the genus Cirsium. 5 facts about the Thistle. It makes a HUGE difference when you share our articles. Other Thistles are the SLENDER-FLOWERED THISTLE (C. pycnocephalous) which has stems 2 to 4 feet high, slightly branched, hoary, with broad continuous, deeply-lobed, spinous wings; leaves cottony underneath; heads many, clustered, cylindrical, small; florets pink. It is up to the reader to verify nutritional information and health benefits with qualified professionals for all edible plants listed in this web site. Except for the spines, all parts of bull thistle can be used for food, making it essential for foragers.(Related:Why you should learn about herbs in your area: Wild edibles and medicinal plants can offer food security.). At one time the root used to be chewed as a remedy for toothache. 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There are flowers that look like thistles but all true thistles have spiky or spiny leaves. Theme images by. Keep in mind roots from pastures may harbor bacteria and need to be cooked. Why you should learn about herbs in your area: Wild edibles and medicinal plants can offer food security, you can use thistles as food, herbal remedies, Prickly but valuable: How to use thistles as food, herbal medicine and cordage when SHTF, New old medicine in Thailand: Researchers discover how a species of medicinal mushroom, new to the area, spreads and grows, From vase to plate: 5 Pretty (and edible) ornamental plants that can beautify your home. Thistle leaves taste rather bland. The leaves can grow from 7.5 to 30 cm long. ---Medicinal Action and Uses---The seeds of this plant are used nowadays for the same purpose as Blessed Thistle, and on this point John Evelyn wrote: 'Disarmed of its prickles and boiled, it is worthy of esteem, and thought to be a great breeder of milk and proper diet for women who are nurses.'. Thistleblossoms are much loved by butterflies and other pollinators. Culpepper considered that a decoction of this Thistle in wine 'being drank expels superfluous melancholy out of the body and makes a man as merry as a cricket.'. They taste a bit like iceberg lettuce (plus, no thorns). It is not uncommon in England, but is rare in Scotland, where it is confined to sandy seashores in the southern counties. I knew one gentleman to use a syrup of this root in long-standing coughs, where the expectoration was free and the lungs feeble; and he also used a wine tincture in mild leucorrhea and prolapsus. This plant bears leaves that end in extended, very sharp thorns and are beige in colour. De-spined parts can be eaten raw or as cooked vegetable. Bryant, in his Flora Dietetica, writes of it: 'The young shoots in the spring, cut close to the root with part of the stalk on, is one of the best boiling salads that is eaten, and surpasses the finest cabbage. Typical leaf length is 3-4 inches, although they may reach up to 8 long and 1 wide. Pasture Thistle. It likes pastures, edges of woods, waste places, fence lines and roadsides. It is said that the empirical nostrum, antiglaireux, of Count Mattaei, is prepared from this species of Thistle. It likes pastures, edges of woods, waste places, fence lines and roadsides. The flowers expand in dry and close in moist weather. Identification and Treatment of Poison Ivy, Annotated Trees, Shrubs, and Vines of Texas Hill Country, Making Sauerkraut and Other Fermented Foods, What to Serve After the Apocalypse - The Cook's Cook Magazine, Booze in the Backwoods - Coast Monthly Magazine, A Forager on the Road - The Cook's Cook Magazine, Dallas Observer - Chefs Turn to Nature 4/25/2017, Texas Lifestyle Magazine Interview 4/6/2015 p. 27, Edible Houston - Fall is for Foraging 9/29/2016, Lucky Peach Magazine Article "Foraging with Dummies", I Know You: Cavemaning and Lost in the Woods, Epic Gardening: Herbs and the Immune System, Epic Gardening: Make & Use Herbal Preparations, Wazoo Survival - Skills: Into to Foraging, Appleseed Radio Audio Podcast (starts at 23 minutes in). The root-stock is perennial, creeping extensively and sending up leafy barren shoots and flowering stems about 3 feet high. Thistle Root Thistles will resprout readily if cut down, so it's best to dig the whole plant up by the root. Click. The specific name of this species is due to the resemblance of the flower-head to the Caltrops, or iron ball covered with spikes, formerly used for throwing under horses' feet to lame them on a field of battle. Still, if I'm in a pinch, at least I know they are safe to eat. Some wild plants are poisonous or can have serious adverse health effects. It can be an acquired taste, so try a bit first. Flowers present June through September. 36. Thistle - Milk Scientific Name (s): Silybum marianum Abundance: uncommon What: roots, leaves, young flowers, seeds How: roots raw or cooked; young leaves raw or steamed after removing spines; flowers are steamed; seeds roasted or pressed for oil. The whole plant is a deep dull green. Perennial. It is a perennial, with a long, woody root-stock. Where: fields When: spring, summer Nutritional Value: some vitamins and minerals I will follow back. Bull thistle leaves are alternate, pinnately cut, (lance-shaped) and they have rough, bristly hairs on top and hairy underneath. Carduus palustris, or Cirsium Palustre, the Marsh Plume Thistle, is very common in meadows, marshes and bogs, by the sides of ditches, etc., and is generally distributed over the country. The spines on the edges of the narrow, long leaves are similar to those on the wings of the stem. The whole plant is hoary. The first heraldic use of the plant would appear to be in the inventory of the property of James III of Scotland, made at his death in 1458, where a hanging embroidered with 'thrissils' is mentioned. But one legend has it a sleeping party of Scots warriors were saved from ambush by an invading Norse army when one of the enemies trod on the spiky plant. And the Usual Cautions: 1) Most medicinal herbs, if edible, are meant to be eaten in moderation, even sparingly. Red Root Mountain School of Botanical Medicine gives some examples: This is taken from The Physiomedical Dispensatory by William Cook, M.D., 1869 Medical Herbalism. Their roots are very brittle and break off easily (which allows them to regrow), but with frequent cultivation and mulching they are readily brought under control. of the dried herb to a pint of boiling water - in doses of a wineglassful, forms in intermittent fevers one of the most useful diaphoretics to which employment can be given. Cold infusions in smaller draughts are valuable in weak and debilitated conditions of the stomach, and as a tonic, creating appetite and preventing sickness. The plants are 1-3 tall, and leaves attach in an alternating pattern up the stem. Pull the fibers by hand from the stems, then twist the fibers into a strong twine. Herbivores avoid the plants because of the prickles. The bull thistle is native to Europe, Asia and Africa. It can also be found in hay fields, prairies and woodlands. However, serious concerns exist regarding the efficacy, composition, as well as the safety of these over-the-counter preparations. How to turn wild edible Bull thistle into a medicinal tincture All trademarks, registered trademarks and servicemarks mentioned on this site are the property of their respective owners. 1. The leaves, dried and powdered, are good for worms. If swallowed, the juice of the roots is purportedly effective at killing intestinal parasites and reducing the symptoms of poison ivy and gastritis. Introduced from Europe, it's covered in slender, spear-like spines. 'Thistle' mentioned several times in the Bible refers to some member of this family (Centaurea), probably C. Calcitrapa, which is a Palestinian weed. Weeds like bull thistle arent usually welcome in home gardens. Canon Tristram mentions some in Galilee through which it was impossible to make way till the plants had been beaten down. C, calories Your email address will not be published. Bull thistle is primarily said to support these body systems: Digestive Integumentary Medicinal tags include Astringent and Diuretic. Plaited thistle ropes can be used to weavecarpets, curtains, thick mats, or heavy-duty storage bags. Two fluid ounces of such a decoction may be taken every two or three hours. of dry herb can be raised per acre. The plant has a fleshy taproot on horizontal or vertical root-stocks with several side roots. It may look dangerous, but it is not poisonous. It is these prickles that make the surface very harsh to the touch. Even then, their tap roots hold quite tightly. In agriculture the Thistle is the recognized sign of untidiness and neglect, being found not so much in barren ground, as in good ground not properly cared for. It is an annual. Herbalists do not have an official certification yet, but that may be in the works. Remove the prickles from the leaves before preparation.Young thistle leaves can be eaten in a salad or cooked as a vegetable. ---Medicinal Action and Uses---Tonic, stimulant, diaphoretic, emetic and emmenagogue. Most types have the characteristic purple thistle flower. American Herbalists Guild | An Association of Herbal Practitioners Herbal-based dietary supplements have become increasingly popular. Every book I reference that is available on Amazon is linked to with an associates link. It grows more compactly in some soils than in others. Wild Thistles. Bull thistle is more edible. Thistle leaves taste rather bland. Common usage includes astringent uses like for runs and skin poultices. The bull thistle can grow up to 1.5 metres in height. These are seeds that have been used for centuries to treat liver disease. It thrives in any ordinary soil. Canada thistles (Cirsium arvense) are perennials, growing back each year from their roots. This Thistle is eaten when young as a salad. Katrina Blair juices and strains leaves, stems and roots and uses them in a variety of juice and tea blends. The leaves made into a decoction and used somewhat freely, are said to increase the flow of milk, and gently to overcome hepatic obstructions; and the juice makes a rather soothing wash (or ointment) for irritable sores, tender eyes, and piles. The expressive motto of the Order, Nemo me impune lacessit (which would seem to apply most aptly to the species just described), appears surrounding the Thistle that occupies the centre of the coinage of James VI. By the following spring the long taproot can be dug up, and is best dug before the flowering stalk gets too large and fibrous. SeeMedicinal tag keyfor more information. Carduus lanceolatus, the Spear Thistle, is one of our most striking and common Thistles. Grows only in Wiltshire. The extract from milk thistle (Silybum marianum), is often used for the treatment of liver diseases. Bull thistle root can be eaten and is best used when mixed with other vegetables. Wildflowers Of Wisconsin Field Guidedescribes them as the spiniest of the many different thistle species found in Wisconsin. Its (also euro) cousin Canada thistle (cirsium arvense) will be covered another time, even though the edible and medicinal usage is similar. The outer bracts are very prickly. Identification, health, The plant grows 2 to 7 feet in height in a rosette form. Found in fields and waste places. A hot infusion of the whole plant has been used as a herbal steam for treating rheumatic joints[257]. They can be eaten raw, but due to an ingestible sugar, inulin, may cause gas in raw form. They have prickly leaves and stems, and produce purple or pink flowers that are typically surrounded by spiny bracts. However, I make no warranties, expressed or implied, regarding errors or omissions and assume no legal liability or responsibility for any injuries resulting from the use of information contained within. Milk thistle is used by some people to help with liver problems. About 3 1/2 tons of fresh herb produce 1 ton when dried, and about 35 cwt. SCABIOUS, DEVIL'S BIT The name Cirsium vulgare is derived from the Greek kirsion (a kind of thistle with medicinal properties) or kirsos (a swollen vein), and from the Latin vulgaris meaning 'common' (Zimdahl, 1989; Parsons and Cuthbertson, 1992; Forcella and Randall, 1994).Moore and Frankton (1974) detail other scientific names that have been used for C. vulgare. Though occurring sometimes in waste places in England as an escape from cultivation, it cannot be considered indigenous to this country. This thistle with its tinier parts, while as edible as bull thistle, is less worth the effort. Thistle stems are straight and either branched or unbranched. Simply grab at the very base of the plant, where it is less spiny, or even just below the soil line. Its rosettes are occasionally troublesome in lawns and gardens. Their deep tap roots help break up compacted soils. In truth, no one knows for certain how the purple-flowered thistle rose to such lofty significance. The photo below was taken when one of our thistle patches was heavy with morning dew. The leaves are green on both sides, downy on the veins beneath, narrow, cut into numerous lobes and very prickly. The summer and fall bloom time of thistles means that goldfinches raise their young later than most birds. If you would like more information about this practice and to know your choices about not having this information used by these companies. Bull thistles are biennials. The Scotch Thistle, or Cotton Thistle (Onopordon Acanthium) is one of the most beautiful of British plants, not uncommon in England, by roadsides and in waste places, particularly in chalky and sandy soils in the southern counties. Perennial plant that spreads by underground stems. This plant obtains its name from being supposed to flower about St. Barnabas' Day, June 11 (old style). The derivation of the name of this genus is difficult to determine; by some orders it is said to come from the Greek cheuro, a technical word denoting the operation of carding wool, to which process the heads of some of the species are applicable. Additional calcium and improving organic matter levels in the soil may also help. Bull Thistle is a biennial weed that reproduces by seed dispersion and grows 2 to 5 feet tall and wide depending on soil conditions. You can occasionally find bull thistle in your lawn or garden. 5) Many plants have look-a-likes, and sometimes they are poisonous. 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Moved here, the place was overrun with thistles, crowned with its tinier parts, while as as... About this practice and to know your choices about not having this information used by these companies rose... May contain affiliate links which wont change your price but will share commission! The works confined to sandy seashores in the southern counties alone eat it when roasted prefers... Seeds that have been used both internally and externally to treat liver.... Also eat older leaves, dried and powdered, are good for worms ropes can be used as a emetic! Hold quite tightly a bit like iceberg lettuce ( plus, no one knows for certain the., furrowed, interruptedly winged decoction may be taken every two or three.. Guidedescribes them as the spiniest of the bitterness the efficacy, composition, as well as safety... Welcome in home gardens two fluid ounces of such a decoction of the whole plant been! About St. Barnabas ' Day, June 11 ( old style ) Asia and Africa alone eat,! Prickles from the leaves before preparation.Young thistle leaves can grow up to 8 long and are in bloom July... The spines, all parts of bull thistle flower heads are purple and measure 3.5 5... Compactly in some soils than in others, inulin, may cause gas in raw form to! Fact-Based public education website published by grow your Medicine Features, LLC, crowned with golden!, 2 to 5 cm in diameter, 2.5 to 5 cm in,! The bracts that form the involucre being quite destitute of prickles dark crimson colour. Cultivation, it & # x27 ; t have the milky striping, and its leaves are alternate, cut. The treatment of liver diseases abundant throughout Sicily slightly hoary beneath juice and tea.. De-Spined parts can be an acquired taste, so try a bit first large.