Yellow Thistle

Cirsium horridulum

Native to Georgia (estimated)

Very weedy. Can be difficult to manage in a garden. Hidden from planting suggestions by default; wildlife value remains unchanged. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

Cirsium horridulum — flower photograph — Craig Martin · CC0 · Original photograph · iNaturalist medium image; no additional crop, retouching, or re-encoding.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

35CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including GA

Genus host records with ranges including GA · Cirsium

Achyra rantalisGarden Webworm Moth
Anagrapha falciferaCelery Looper Moth
Autographa precationisCommon Looper Moth
Calephelis virginiensisNorthern Metalmark
Cenopis reticulatanaReticulated Fruitworm Moth
Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
Dicymolomia julianalisJulia's Dicymolomia
Epiblema scudderianaScudder's Epiblema, Goldenrod Gall Moth
Homoeosoma electellaSunflower Moth
Lipocosmodes fuliginosalisSooty Lipocosmodes

Show all 35

Megalographa bilobaBilobed Looper Moth
Orthodes cynicaCynical Quaker, Cynical Groundcat
Papaipema arctivorensNorthern Burdock Borer Moth
Papaipema cataphractaBurdock Border, Potato-Stalk Borer
Papaipema cerussataIronweed Borer Moth
Papaipema insulidensRagwort Stem Borer
Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
Paralobesia viteanaAmerican Vine Moth, Grape Berry Moth
Phlogophora irisOlive Angle Shades
Phyciodes tharosPearl Crescent, Crescentspot
Phycitodes reliquellaWhite-Edged Phycitodes
Platyptilia carduidactylusArtichoke Plume Moth
Pyrausta subsequalisMottled Pyrausta
Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
Syntomeida ipomoeaeYellow-Banded Wasp Moth
Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
Vanessa virginiensisAmerican Lady, American Painted Lady
Walshia miscecolorellaSweetclover Root Borer Moth
Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
Eupsilia schweitzeri
Hedya cyanana
Homoeosoma pedionnastes
Pseudotelphusa carduiella

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

60BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Cirsium

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0

12Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Cirsium

Andrena nubecula
Andrena placata
Andrena runcinatae
Andrena simplex
Diadasia enavata
Megachile pugnata
Melissodes confusus
Melissodes desponsus
Melissodes illatus
Melissodes rivalis

Show all 12

Osmia chalybea
Osmia texana

Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0

6BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Cirsium

Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
Perdix perdixGray Partridge
Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Asteraceae
Hardiness: Zones 5a–10b
Soil pH: Neutral to alkaline
Flower color: Cream, yellow, pink, purple, red or white

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “Spring and summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Flower color · “Cream, yellow, pink, purple, red or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Hardiness · “Zones 5a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Height · “Up to about 8 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Life cycle · “Annual, biennial or perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil · “Good drainage; Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil pH · “Neutral to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Also known as

Bull Thistle; Carduus spinosissimus and Carduus smallii; Common Yellow Thistle; Horrid Thistle; Yellow Thistle; plumeless thistle; plumeless-thistle

Conservation status

Georgia rank	Not available
Global rank	G5
GA status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

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