Carduus nutans - Nodding thistle

Carduus nutans, or Nodding Thistle, is a biennial or perennial herb with spiny leaves and purple flower heads that droop (nod). It is native to Eurasia but has become invasive in parts of North America, competing with native vegetation.

Inputs

• Hardiness zone 3¹
• Hardiness zone 4¹
• Hardiness zone 5¹
• Hardiness zone 6¹
• Hardiness zone 7¹
• Hardiness zone 8¹
• Hardiness zone 9¹

Outputs

• Human food¹
• Fibre¹

Type

• Herb
• Biennial

Functions

• Iron accumulator²
• Attracting beneficial insects¹

Footnotes

1. Carduus nutans | Plants for a Future ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

2. Gaia’s Garden - A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, 2nd Edition Table 6-2 ↩