H 
Y. 
ONOPORDON ACANTHIUM, Linne. 
The Scotch Heraldic Thistle. 
The generic name was written by Linne Onopordum, but the 
writing generally adopted is in accordance with the name as 
given by Plinius from ancient Greek authors. 
Indigenous to Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa. 
Here less obstructive than the other Thistles. Height up to 
some few or rarely many feet, but often dwarfed. Flowering 
under ordinary circumstances only once from the same root. 
All over or particularly the leaves beneath more or less webby - 
lanuginous. Leaves conspicuously decurrent, except those at the 
root, in outline from rhomboid-ovate to narrow-lanceolar, short- 
lobed or only indented, always irregularly spinescent-denticulate, 
sometimes glabrescent above, the lower to one foot long and 
occasionally some deeply cleft. Headlets of flowers singly 
terminating branches or approximated branchlets. Involucre 
truncate-globular, consisting of numerous rather small spreading 
upwards linear-subulate very pungent bracts, the lowest bent 
downwards. Receptacle honeycombed and dentieular-foveolate, 
but devoid of setular-capillary bracts. Corollas upwards purplish- 
red or rarely quite white, the lower half thinly filiform, the upper 
half suddenly turgid, somewhat irregularly cleft into five narrow 
bluntish lobes. Stamens alternate to the corolla-lobes, their 
filaments almost glabrous ; anthers connate, linear- sagittate, pur- 
plish. Style capillulary ; stigmas narrowly semicylindric, coher- 
ent except, at the summit, with a slight basal enlargement. Fruits 
somewhat compressed, nearly ovate, longitudinally angular-lined, 
outside brown or greyish and occasionally black-spotted, con- 
spicuously wrinkled, supported within its receptacular hollow by 
only a minute bract. Pappus-bristlets numerous, subtly ciliolar 
denticulated, at the base connate, sometimes reddish. 
Explanation of Plate V. 
Flowering branch with its leaves, natural size (lithographic 
colouration green instead of greyish). 
1. Longitudinal section of a headlet of flowers. 
2. Alveolar bracts of receptacle, one yet retaining its fruit, 
3. A complete flower, with young fruit and pappus. 
4. A corolla laid open, showing also stamens, style and stigmas. 
5. A stamen separated. 
6. Style and stigmas. 
7. Side view of a fruit. 
8. Fruit, presenting its summit. 
9. Longitudinal section of a fruit across the cotyledons. 
10. Longitudinal section of a fruit parallel to the cotyledons. 
11. Transverse section of a fruit. 
1-10, Enlarged, but to various extent. 
