BANE of agricultural land, despoiler of picnics and of little practical value, it is odd that the ever-troublesome thistle has, nevertheless, earned our affection. Respect, as everyone knows, is something they uncompromisingly demand. What counts as a thistle? If you will forgive the unavoidably clumsy caveats, they are usually prickly members of some of the tribe of plants known as the Cardueae, one of the many tribes in the daisy family. Most British thistles belong to the genera Cirsium and Carduus, the first including the creeping, spear, meadow, marsh, dwarf (or stemless or picnic) and woolly thistle. The second group houses the musk, welted and slender thistle. There are also other familiar thistles within the Cardueae family, such as the Scottish thistle, milk thistle and carline thistle, and among the members that are not thistles are burdocks and knapweeds. Now you know.
With so few resident thistles, it is surprising how difficult they are to differentiate. I cannot provide a complete thistle primer, but a simple tip for telling a Carduus from a Cirsium will help. As it is the seed hairs that are distinct, the specimen under investigation must be ready to release its seeds. In Carduus, they are simply straight hairs, in Cirsium they are 'feathery', each hair bearing many smaller ones radiating outwards at 90 degrees.
Purple reign
‘A fig for the flowers in your lady-built bowers/The strong-bearded, weel-guarded Thistle for me!’ This snippet of patriotic song conspicuously fails to say ‘meadow thistle’ or ‘creeping thistle’, only ‘thistle’. As we have seen, there is a Scottish thistle—Onopordum acanthium, to be precise, otherwise known as the cotton thistle. It was declared the emblem of Scotland in 1822 by Sir Walter Scott during a visit to the country by George IV. Surely this is the one?
Denne historien er fra August 21, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra August 21, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
