Canada Thistle

Cirsium arvense

Not native to Kentucky

Do not plant. Listed invasive in Kentucky.

Photographs are not available yet.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

32CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including KY

Genus host records with ranges including KY · Cirsium

Show all 32

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
Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
Vanessa virginiensisAmerican Lady, American Painted Lady
Walshia miscecolorellaSweetclover Root Borer Moth
Xestia c-nigrumSpotted Cut-Worm, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Lesser Black-letter Dart
Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
Hedya cyanana

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

12Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Cirsium

Show all 12

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

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

Growing and identification

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Flower color · “Pink, purple or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Hardiness · “Zones 4a–7b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Height · “1 to 6.5 feet (0.3-2 m) tall” · Fire Effects Information System: Cirsium arvense · Source botanical description; original units and scope retained
Life cycle · “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 · “Moist; Occasionally dry; Occasionally wet; Very dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil pH · “Neutral to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Also known as

Canada Thistle; Carduus arvensis; Field Thistle; plumeless thistle; plumeless-thistle