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{{italic title}}
{{taxobox
| name = ''Carduus nutans''
| image = Musk thistle.jpg
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| unranked_divisio = [[Angiosperms]]
| unranked_classis = [[Eudicots]]
| unranked_ordo = [[Asterids]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| tribus = [[Cynareae]]
| genus = ''[[Carduus]]''
| species = '''''C. nutans'''''
| binomial = ''Carduus nutans''
| binomial_authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
'''''Carduus nutans''''', with the common names '''musk thistle''',<ref name=BSBI07>{{cite web|title=BSBI List 2007 |publisher=Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland |url=http://www.bsbi.org.uk/BSBIList2007.xls |format=xls |archive-url=http://www.webcitation.org/6VqJ46atN?url=http://www.bsbi.org.uk/BSBIList2007.xls |archive-date=2015-01-25 |accessdate=2014-10-17 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> '''nodding thistle''', and '''nodding plumeless thistle''', is a biennial [[herb]] in the [[Asteraceae]]—sunflower family. It is native to regions of Europe and Asia.<ref name="grin">[http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?104109 Species account from ARS Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) — ''Carduus nutans''] . accessed 4.8.2013</ref>

==Distribution==
''Carduus nutans'' is a [[native plant]] of Eurasia.<ref name="grin"/> It is an [[introduced species]], and often a [[noxious weed]], in other regions and on other continents.<ref name="grin"/>

The plant grows from sea level to an elevation of about {{convert|2,500|m|ft}}. It is found in neutral to acidic [[soil]]s. It typically grows in meadows and [[grassland]]s, in heavily [[grazing|grazed]] land in areas such as [[pasture]]s, and on open disturbed soil such as roadsides and building sites. It spreads rapidly in areas subjected to frequent natural disturbance events such as landslides and flooding, but does not grow well in excessively wet, dry, or shady conditions.

==Description==
''Carduus nutans'' is usually a [[Biennial plant|biennial]], requiring 2 years to complete a reproductive cycle. However, it may [[germinate]] and flower in a single year in warmer climates. Seedlings may emerge at any time from spring to late summer and develop a rosette. Plants overwinter in the rosette stage, sending up a multi-branched flowering stem in mid spring of their second year.

Mature plants range in height from {{convert|1|-|1.5|m|ft}} tall and have multi-branched [[Plant stem|stems]]. Musk thistle has sharply spiny stems and [[Leaf|leaves]]. The stem is cottony/hairy. The plants develop a [[Rosette (botany)|rosette]], with large leaves {{convert|30|–|60|cm|in}} long

The leaves are dark green, coarsely bipinnately lobed, with a smooth, waxy surface and sharp yellow-brown to whitish spines at the tips of the lobes.They are more or less hairy on top, and wooly on the veins below.<ref name="The Wild Flower Key">{{cite book |last=Rose |first=Francis|authorlink=Francis Rose |title=The Wild Flower Key |year=1981 |publisher=Frederick Warne & Co|isbn=0-7232-2419-6 |pages=382–383}}</ref>

===Flowers===
[[Image:Carduus nutans 180807.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Flower head.]]
[[Image:Carduus nutans habitus.jpeg|thumb|225px|Blooming in grassland habitat.]]
The plant bears showy red-purple [[flower]]s. The large globose [[inflorescence|flower heads]], containing hundreds of tiny individual [[flower]]s, are 3–5 cm (rarely to 7 cm) diameter and occur at the tips of stems. The flower heads commonly droop to a 90° to 120° angle from the stem when mature, hence its alternate name of "Nodding thistle". Each plant may produce thousands of straw-colored seeds adorned with plume-like bristles. They are 4 to 6 cm across, with purple-red [[bracts]].

The number of flowerheads per plant is site-dependent and ranges from about 20-50 on good sites and 1-20 on poor sites. Flowering occurs from late spring to late summer, and seed dissemination occurs approximately one month after the flowers form. A single flower head may produce 1,200 seeds and a single plant up to 120,000 seeds, which are wind dispersed. The seeds may remain viable in the soil for over ten years, making it a difficult plant to control.

==Invasive species==
''Carduus nutans'' is an [[invasive species]] in various regions around the world, including in disturbed and agricultural settings, and in natural [[habitat]]s.{{citation needed|date=August 2016}}

Musk thistle was introduced into the eastern [[North America]] in the early 19th century, and has been an invasive species there since. It is a declared a [[noxious weed]] in many [[U.S. states]], [[Canadian province]]s, [[South Africa]], [[New Zealand]], and [[Australia]].<ref name="grin"/><ref>[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=canu4 USDA] . accessed 4.8.2013</ref> Previous populations in [[Southern California]] were eradicated, but it remains in northern [[California]].<ref>[http://www.cal-ipc.org/ip/management/plant_profiles/Carduus_nutans.php Cal IPC—California Invasive Plants Council: ''Carduus nutans'' (musk thistle)]</ref> 

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Carduus nutans}}
*[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CANU4 USDA Plants Profile — ''Carduus nutans'' (nodding plumeless thistle)]
*[http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?609,867,869 Jepson Manual Treatment: Carduus nutans]
* [http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/plants/muskthistle.shtml U.S. National Invasive Species Information Center: Species Profile — Musk Thistle (''Carduus nutans'')] — ''Lists general information and resources. From the [[United States National Agricultural Library]]''.
*[http://desertgardenplants.com/desertplants/wildflowers/muskthistle.html Musk Thistle wildflower information]
*[http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/entml2/l873.aspx KSU: "Biological Control of the Musk Thistle in Kansas"]
*[http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?query_src=photos_index&where-taxon=Carduus+nutans ''Carduus nutans'' — U.C. Photo gallery]

[[Category:Carduus|nutans]]
[[Category:Angiosperms of Metropolitan France]]
[[Category:Flora of the Mediterranean]]
[[Category:Flora of North Africa]]
[[Category:Flora of Western Asia]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Afghanistan]]
[[Category:Flora of Algeria]]
[[Category:Flora of Estonia]]
[[Category:Flora of Germany]]
[[Category:Flora of Greece]]
[[Category:Flora of Iran]]
[[Category:Flora of Ireland]]
[[Category:Flora of Italy]]
[[Category:Flora of Kazakhstan]]
[[Category:Flora of Mongolia]]
[[Category:Flora of Morocco]]
[[Category:Flora of Russia]]
[[Category:Flora of Siberia]]
[[Category:Flora of Spain]]
[[Category:Flora of Switzerland]]
[[Category:Flora of Tunisia]]
[[Category:Flora of Turkey]]
[[Category:Flora of Ukraine]]
[[Category:Flora of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Flora of Xinjiang]]
[[Category:Invasive plant species]]
[[Category:Invasive plant species in Australia]]
[[Category:Invasive plant species in New Zealand]]
[[Category:Invasive plant species in South Africa]]
[[Category:Invasive plant species in the United States]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1753]]

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