 Purple
Starthistle
- Asteraceae: Centaurea
calcitrapa
- CDFA B rated; CalEPPC
B rated
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- Purple starthistle is
a vicious, spiny plant with a bitter taste, that cattle, horses
and wildlife avoid grazing. The species name, "calcitrapa",
is derived from the word caltrop, a weapon used to hinder the
movement of tanks and calvary in ancient and modern times.
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- In Santa Barbara County,
it can be found as a rangeland pest from Las Cruces to Lompoc.
It has been recorded near Santa Maria and Summerland and was
found in Los Alamos in the early 1950s.
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- Purple starthistle is
biennial thistle, but may be an annual or short-lived perennial
under some conditions. It has a mounding growth habit with purple
flower heads with sharp, stiff spines. The plant can break at
ground level, dispersing the seeds much like a tumbleweed.
-
- Small infestations can
be controlled by grubbing or digging -- cutting the plant, two
inches below the soil surface, early in the growing season. Clopyralid,
glyphosate, 2,4-D and dicamba have been effective in controlling
this weed. Mowing is not effective.
-
- For more information,
on the web, visit: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/weedinfo/centaurea.htm
and http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/datastore/detailreport.cfm?usernumber=26&surveynumber=182
-
- References:
- Bossard, Carla C. ed.,
et al. Invasive Plants of California's Wildlands. 2000. University
of California Press
- CDFA's Encycloweedia.http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/encycloweedia/encycloweedia_hp.htm
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