Creeping Thistle (Cirsium arvense)

Family: Asteraceae or Compositae | Edibility: Edible (2/5)

Bloom Color: Pink, Purple. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late summer, Mid summer. Form: Irregular or sprawling.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves, Shoots, Roots/Tubers

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

rich in inulin, a starch that cannot be digested by humans. — Root of first year plants - raw or cooked.; Nutritious but rather bland, they are best used in a mixture with other vegetables.; The root is likely to be rich in inulin, a starch that cannot be digested by humans.; This starch thus passes straight through the digestive system and, in some people, ferments to produce flatulence.

Habitat & North American Range

Arable land, roadsides etc, a common weed of cultivated land. (Zone 3, Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8)