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Cirsium discolor (Willd.) Spreng.

Common Name: PASTURE THISTLE
Coefficient of Conservatism: 4
Coefficient of Wetness: 5
Wetness Index: UPL
Physiognomy: Nt B-Forb

Meadows, fields, clearings, hillsides, river banks, sparsely forested sites; roadsides, vacant lots, pine plantations; doubtless originally in prairie openings.

This species is very similar to C. altissimum. The heads of C. discolor run a little larger (involucre ca. 2.4–3.3 cm long in our material, compared with 2–2.7 cm in C. altissimum), but precise measurements are hard to determine. The white-flowered form [f. albiflorum (Britton) House] has been collected in Calhoun, Lenawee, Oakland, and Washtenaw Cos.

M. Demmon

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Counties
Bay
Berrien
Branch
Calhoun
Cass
Emmet
Genesee
Grand Traverse
Hillsdale
Jackson
Kalamazoo
Kent
Lake
Lenawee
Livingston
Macomb
Mecosta
Menominee
Midland
Monroe
Newaygo
Oakland
St. Clair
Tuscola
Washtenaw
Wayne

Citation:
MICHIGAN FLORA ONLINE. A. A. Reznicek, E. G. Voss, & B. S. Walters. February 2011. University of Michigan. Web. March, 17, 2025
https://lsa-miflora-p.lsait.lsa.umich.edu/#/record/285