Cirsium spp.; thistle [Asteraceae]  Mostly coarse, tall (C. altissimum can grow to 10’), biennial or perennial herbs with painfully spiny leaves.  Distinctively shaped heads typically cupped with bristly bracts, topped by a purple tuft formed by the protruding long, narrow corolla lobes of the tubular flowers.  The biennial species form a rosette of prickly leaves that overwinters the first year and flowers the next.  Roughly 12 species in our area, both native and alien.  Some alien species are invasive.  Some native species common and widespread, others quite rare.  Found in marshes, prairies, gardens, and waste places.  Flowers in summer and fall.  [132]