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WESTERN THISTLE (Cdrduus occidentdlis, Nutt.). Heads 

 solitary on long peduncles, the tubular florets a clear red or 

 crimson, 1 to 1| inches long, the involucre densely covered 

 with cobwebby hairs. Leaves rather deeply lobed, only 

 mildly prickly, smoothish above, white-hairy beneath. A 

 stout plant 2 to 5 feet high, the stems when young very white 

 with a coating of cottony wool. In its different forms- it is 

 quite variable it is common from the Lower California line 

 to Southern Oregon, and from the coast to the desert; bloom- 

 ing in spring and summer. 



This lovely thistle catches the eye instantly when seen amid 

 the dun chaparral of the foothills, where its bright red showy 

 heads glow like coals. One variety candidissimus com- 

 mon in northeastern California, is remarkable for having the 

 entire foliage almost snow white with a persistent woolliness. 



A peculiar thistle frequently found in mountain meadows of 

 the Pacific Slope from Lower California northward is Carduus 

 Drummondii, var. acaulescens (Gray) Coville, characterized 

 by having several heads of white flowers (but sometimes 

 magenta) sessile in the centre of a rosette of leaves flat upon 

 the ground. 



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