01.
A Bit of Botany
botanical information about blessed thistle
description
Blessed thistle is an annual plant in the Asteraceae family, which scarcely
exceeds 2 feet in height. It has a coarse, erect, branched, and rather
woolly stem.
Blessed thistle leaves are 3 to 6 inches long, more or less hairy, with
margins lobed and spiny. The yellow flower heads which appear from about May
to August are borne at the ends of the branches, almost hidden by the upper
leaves, and are about 1 ½ inches long. Surrounding the flower heads are
leathery scales, tipped with long, branching, yellowish-red spines.
The herb has a rather disagreeable odor which is lost in drying.
common names
& nomenclature
Centaurea derives from the Latin word for centaur, a half man/half horse creature from Greek mythology, and benedicta means blessed.
A general West Germanic borrowing, cf. Old Frisian bete, Middle Dutch
bete, Old High German bieza, German Beete.
Also known as:
holy thistle,
blessed knapweed,
saint benedict thistle,
spotted thistle,
cardin,
bitter thistle,
blessed cardus,
our lady's thistle,
cursed thistle,
and
spotted cardus