- Author: Thomas J Getts
Ten years ago, Guy Kyser wrote an excellent blog on the identification of Northern California's “Big Three” invasive thistles. I encourage you to check it out, if I recall correctly, it is one of the most viewed blog posts ever posted on the UC Weed blog, which is impressive!
Driving back home from Quincy yesterday, in the Dixie fire scar on Hwy 70, there were hundreds of native “snowy thistles” growing along the steep slopes clinging to the rocks. This has to be one of my favorite plants since moving to California. Stark white, covered in hairs, with a vibrant pink flower,...
- Author: Rachael Freeman Long
- Author: Thomas Getts
- Author: Jose Carvalho de Souza Dias
- Posted by: Gale Perez
A very spiny plant was dropped off at my office here in Woodland, CA that turned out to be Canada thistle, a noxious weed (Photo 1). This plant is commonly found in the Intermountain area in northern California where it has overtaken fields (Photo 2), but my first encounter here in the Sacramento Valley. It was found in row crop ground (Photo 3) and the landowner was having trouble controlling it. He cut it 6-in below ground, but it resprouted and grew back more shoots (Photo 4). He spot sprayed it with glyphosate and 2,4D, but the plants recovered (likely burned back the plants before good translocation happened, Photo 5).
Canada thistle is one really tough...