Wyoming thistle is a native North American perennial wildflower of the western United States, mainly Wyoming, with pink, purple or cream flower heads. It grows from a large taproot and, unlike many thistles, can bloom more than once, so it is best grown as a hardy garden plant in full sun with good drainage.
Family
Asteraceae (Daisy family)
Grows as
Perennial
Light
Full sun
Water
Water sparingly once established; let the soil dry out between waterings.
Soil
Well-drained, sandy or gravelly soil; tolerates poor soil.
Temperature
Hardy in cold winters typical of the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains; tolerates frost.
How easy
Moderate
Native range
WC. U.S.A.
About
Cirsium pulcherrimum, the Wyoming thistle , is a North American species of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae. The species is native to the western United States, primarily in the state of Wyoming but also in surrounding areas (Montana, Colorado, eastern Idaho, western Nebraska, northeastern Utah, and the Black Hills of South Dakota).
Cirsium pulcherrimum is a perennial herb up to 90 cm (36 inches or 3 feet) tall, with a large taproot, blooming more than once (unlike many of its relatives, which die after blooming). Leaves are up to 25 cm (10 inches) long with thin spines along the edges of the leaves. There are a few flower heads, each head with pink, purple or cream-colored disc florets but no ray florets.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Cirsium pulcherrimum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.