Cirsium erisithales, the yellow thistle[2] or yellow melancholy thistle, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae.[3]
Cirsium erisithales can reach a height of 50–150 millimetres (2.0–5.9 in). The stems are erect, almost hairless. This plant has just a few leaves, with tooth-shaped lobes. Flower heads are lemon yellow, solitary or in groups (up to 5), with a diameter of 25–30 millimetres (0.98–1.18 in).[4]
This species is widespread in southern and eastern Europe, though nowhere very common. It is present in the mountains of France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Ukraine, the Balkans, Greece, southern Russia, etc.[5]
Cirsium erisithales grows in fresh wood (beech), rocky slopes, meadows and waters edge. It prefers calcareous or volcanic soils, at an elevation of 400–2,000 metres (1,300–6,600 ft) above sea level.[6]
Leaf of Cirsium erisithales Cirsium erisithales, the yellow thistle or yellow melancholy thistle, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae.
