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First reported for South Carolina by Hill & Horn (1997)."},{"field":"phenology_source_text","source_column":"Phenology","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"Organism","value":"Jun-Oct."},{"field":"taxonomic_synonymy","source_column":"Synonymy","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"Organism","value":"[= C, Can, F, FNA19, G, Il, K1, K4, Mi, NcTx, NE, NS, NY, Oh3, Ok, Pa, RAB, S, SE1, WV; = n/a — Tat; > Centaurea solstitialis L. ssp. solstitialis — POWO]"},{"field":"heliophily_index","source_column":"HIndex","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"Organism","value":9},{"field":"habitat_moisture_categories","source_column":"Attr2","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"GraphicKey","value":["Dry","Moist","Wet"]},{"field":"habitat_light_categories","source_column":"Attr3","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"GraphicKey","value":["Full sun"]},{"field":"graphic_key_source_attributes","source_column":"Attr0..25","source_database_sha256":"684f6b364ff9f3023aa61ed02ae50f6f6d6d4d3bcf76847b78ab769ae0453469","source_record_id":5852,"source_table":"GraphicKey","value":{"Attr0":"gr08","Attr1":"nc_cp,sc_cp,","Attr10":"en,to","Attr11":"dk","Attr13":"ye","Attr14":"bris","Attr2":"Dry,Moist,Wet","Attr3":"Sun","Attr3a":"n","Attr3a_subregion":"native_nc_cp:n,native_sc_cp:n,","Attr4":" 5-11","Attr5":"pu","Attr6":"n","Attr7":"n,y","Attr8":"alt","Attr9":"lc,si"}}],"values":{"geographic_range_description":"Native of Mediterranean Europe. First reported for South Carolina by Hill & Horn (1997).","graphic_key_source_attributes":{"Attr0":"gr08","Attr1":"nc_cp,sc_cp,","Attr10":"en,to","Attr11":"dk","Attr13":"ye","Attr14":"bris","Attr2":"Dry,Moist,Wet","Attr3":"Sun","Attr3a":"n","Attr3a_subregion":"native_nc_cp:n,native_sc_cp:n,","Attr4":" 5-11","Attr5":"pu","Attr6":"n","Attr7":"n,y","Attr8":"alt","Attr9":"lc,si"},"habitat_description":"Roadsides, disturbed areas.","habitat_light_categories":["Full sun"],"habitat_moisture_categories":["Dry","Moist","Wet"],"heliophily_index":9,"phenology_source_text":"Jun-Oct.","taxonomic_synonymy":"[= C, Can, F, FNA19, G, Il, K1, K4, Mi, NcTx, NE, NS, NY, Oh3, Ok, Pa, RAB, S, SE1, WV; = n/a — Tat; > Centaurea solstitialis L. ssp. solstitialis — POWO]"}},"forest_service":{"identity_basis":"Exact existing catalog or state-source name","matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","retrieved":"2026-10-01T13:42:25.203745+00:00","scope":"Source botanical description; original units and scope retained","scoring_allowed":false,"source_label":"Fire Effects Information System: Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"6da4fa78295abaf17e38258fc7798622f485474d0c2cd8cb9c1e84dde1487019","source_url":"https://research.fs.usda.gov/feis/species-reviews/censol","trait_evidence":[{"catalog_id":"nc:centaurea-solstitialis","field":"height_description","height_description":"Yellow starthistle stems are typically 0.3 to 3.3 feet (10 to 100 cm) tall [11,56,99,119,133,177,330], sometimes up to 4.9 or 6.6 feet (150 or 200 cm) tall [67,283], depending on site conditions.","life_stage":"general_botanical_description","matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","paragraph_sha256":"48275acf43dc4e3b2e87adff3b41127ea003209d071e79ed888a2cff870f7c23","retrieved":"2026-10-01T13:42:25.203745+00:00","review_status":"reviewed","source_quote":"Yellow starthistle is a winter annual [11,56,67,99,133,177,186,330] or sometimes biennial [56,119,186,330] forb. Plants begin as rosettes with 6 to 28 leaves that lie close to the ground [283]. When crowded and shaded, rosette leaves grow more upright [240,258]. Yellow starthistle stems are typically 0.3 to 3.3 feet (10 to 100 cm) tall [11,56,99,119,133,177,330], sometimes up to 4.9 or 6.6 feet (150 or 200 cm) tall [67,283], depending on site conditions. For example, plants may grow up to 6 feet (1.8 m) tall in wet locations but only 6 inches (15 cm) tall in hot, dry locations [240]. Stems are simple or branched from the base, often forming rounded, bushy plants [11,99,133] (fig. 3). Leaves become progressively smaller up the stem. Lower leaves are 2 to 6 inches (5–15 cm) long [67,99], and upper leaves are 0.4 to 1.2 inches (1–3 cm) long, narrow, and densely covered with cobwebby hairs later in the season [67].","source_section":"Centaurea solstitialis, yellow starthistle / Botanical Description","source_sha256":"6da4fa78295abaf17e38258fc7798622f485474d0c2cd8cb9c1e84dde1487019","source_title":"Fire Effects Information System: Centaurea solstitialis","source_url":"https://research.fs.usda.gov/feis/species-reviews/censol"}],"values":{"height_description":"Yellow starthistle stems are typically 0.3 to 3.3 feet (10 to 100 cm) tall [11,56,99,119,133,177,330], sometimes up to 4.9 or 6.6 feet (150 or 200 cm) tall [67,283], depending on site conditions."}},"minnesota_wildflowers":{"matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","retrieved":"2026-10-04T02:32:20.526425+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Source-reported species characteristics; not a location-specific estimate.","source_label":"Minnesota Wildflowers","source_sha256":"f0bae64508aaea6d278fd61e62c1d127b561c7a62588bc6d20c749231826787d","source_url":"https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/yellow-starthistle","trait_evidence":[{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"height_description","original_field":"height","record_id":"trait:affbffd39af64ab54839904ba3d755b275cd7b3e3a2fab33a5c5a7e7c2e3ef71","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:20.526425+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"minnesota","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"f0bae64508aaea6d278fd61e62c1d127b561c7a62588bc6d20c749231826787d","source_url":"https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/yellow-starthistle","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":{"max":5,"min":0.5,"unit":"feet"}},{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"life_cycle","original_field":"life_cycle","record_id":"trait:b72a305a19e8aa87bfd03fca313d49794a445de3765db6dbff88bdc524799dfd","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:20.526425+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"minnesota","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"f0bae64508aaea6d278fd61e62c1d127b561c7a62588bc6d20c749231826787d","source_url":"https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/yellow-starthistle","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["annual"]}],"values":{"height_description":"0.5–5 feet","life_cycle":["annual"]}},"ncsu_sitemap":{"matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","retrieved":"2026-10-04T02:32:50.789879+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Source-reported species characteristics; 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distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"ncsu","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"4b32fe0b5c69d6096cda6fbad84bd43fba8ec5f849954ea3ed0e51028f0d6762","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/centaurea-solstitialis/","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["Annual"]},{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"hardiness_zones","original_field":"hardiness","record_id":"trait:42a8aeb8fcc7206901237506ab1354502086b7eb95dec18e395ad8aa0cf2d6aa","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:50.789879+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"ncsu","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"4b32fe0b5c69d6096cda6fbad84bd43fba8ec5f849954ea3ed0e51028f0d6762","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/centaurea-solstitialis/","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a"]},{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"flower_color","original_field":"flower_color","record_id":"trait:5280f61cb6538efdd7ceefbbe059889b9c17ac87f0a7ef46649b9d2e882c000f","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:50.789879+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"ncsu","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"4b32fe0b5c69d6096cda6fbad84bd43fba8ec5f849954ea3ed0e51028f0d6762","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/centaurea-solstitialis/","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["Gold/Yellow"]},{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"soil_ph_categories","original_field":"soil_ph","record_id":"trait:78a4eece6a188b870782ec3d202d04002fb1582e3d85e9bcfe1d0e4457a29d2a","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:50.789879+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"ncsu","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"4b32fe0b5c69d6096cda6fbad84bd43fba8ec5f849954ea3ed0e51028f0d6762","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/centaurea-solstitialis/","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["Acid (<6.0)","Alkaline (>8.0)","Neutral (6.0-8.0)"]},{"expected_source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","field":"moisture_categories","original_field":"soil_moisture","record_id":"trait:9324ee1c26571c8bcc230ab1f263e4533d1ea109791ba93e355e132bf35ca6c9","retrieved_at":"2026-10-04T02:32:50.789879+00:00","scope":{"kind":"unspecified"},"scope_note":"Species profile; distribution and native-status discovery filters do not establish local growing or bloom timing.","source":"ncsu","source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","source_sha256":"4b32fe0b5c69d6096cda6fbad84bd43fba8ec5f849954ea3ed0e51028f0d6762","source_url":"https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/centaurea-solstitialis/","status":"eligible_fact","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","value":["Occasionally Dry"]}],"values":{"flower_color":["Gold/Yellow"],"hardiness_zones":["5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a"],"life_cycle":["Annual"],"light":["Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)"],"moisture_categories":["Occasionally Dry"],"soil_ph_categories":["Acid (<6.0)","Alkaline (>8.0)","Neutral (6.0-8.0)"]}}},"light_range":["full sun","full sun"],"light_source":"NC Extension Plant Toolbox","native_synthesis":{"claims":[{"claim":"introduced","matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","scope":"TN-KY","source":"tnky_atlas","url":"https://tennessee-kentucky.plantatlas.usf.edu/plant/species/3563"},{"claim":"introduced","matched_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","scope":"L48","source":"usda","text":"CAN:I L48:I","url":"https://plants.usda.gov/"}],"county_native_range":"unresolved","explanation":"Source scopes are preserved. State occurrence alone does not establish nativity; combined regional evidence is labeled estimated.","label":"Not native to Kentucky","rule":"southeast-native-synthesis-1","status":"not_native"},"source_name":"Centaurea solstitialis","taxon_id":"taxon:368fdf50-1e67-5a7c-928a-6e307a5e8d8e","revision":"publish:5809c037-0e9a-430a-8008-5ab6f69800c0","photos":[{"id":"centaurea-solstitialis-327503","src":"/api/photos/image/23210aa9147203655ec3efdeebbd3c42bc781db07b6d478097d26397e48c969e.jpg","view":"bloom","alt":"Centaurea solstitialis — flower photograph","width":960,"height":1463,"artist":"Peggy Greb","license":"Public domain","license_url":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Public_domain","source_url":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yellow_star_thistle.jpg","changes":"Wikimedia thumbnail; no crop or retouching"}]}