Carduus defloratus

Perennial of the Asteraceae family, Carduus defloratus is a mountain thistle of central and southern Europe, found in the Alps, Apennines, Carpathians, and eastern Pyrenees. It colonizes rocky grasslands, screes, edges, and sunny grassy slopes, generally between 800 and 2,400 meters in altitude, on calcareous or mixed substrates.

The plant forms a well-developed basal rosette, visible in the second photograph, with deeply pinnatisect leaves, with narrow segments ending in fine spines, bright green on top and paler underneath. The stems are erect, with little or no wings, which immediately distinguishes this species from many other thistles of the genus Carduus, and reach 30 to 80 cm in height.

The flower heads are solitary at the top of the stem, medium-sized, with narrowly linear involucral bracts long and spreading to reflexed, giving the involucre a very bristly and radiant appearance. The tubular flowers are a bright pink-purple.

In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from July to September depending on the altitude.

It requires well-drained soil, mineral to slightly humiferous, in full sun, and adapts well to cold winters and dry summers.