Cirsium oleraceum

Cirsium oleraceum
	Flowerhead with Tatra Mountains
	Painting by C. A. M. Lindman
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Genus:	Cirsium
Species:	C. oleraceum
Binomial name
	Cirsium oleraceum; (L.) Scop.
Synonyms
	Synonymy Carduus acanthifolius Lam. ; Carduus oleraceus (L.) Vill. ; Carduus parviflorus L. ; Carduus rigens Dryand. ex Aiton ; Carduus tataricus L. ; Cirsium braunii Nyman ; Cirsium flavescens Lam. ; Cirsium pallens DC. ; Cirsium parviflorum DC. ; Cirsium parviflorum Schleich. ex Steud. ; Cirsium praemorsum W.D.J.Koch ; Cirsium rigens Spreng. ; Cirsium subalatum Gaudin ; Cirsium thomasii Nägeli ; Cirsium variabile Moench ; Cnicus oleraceus L. ; Cynara colorata Stokes ;

Cirsium oleraceum, the cabbage thistle^[3] or Siberian thistle, is a species of thistle in the genus Cirsium within the family Asteraceae, native to central and eastern Europe and Asia, where it grows in wet lowland soils.^[4]

Cirsium oleraceum is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 1.5 m tall, the stems unbranched or with only a very few branches. The leaves are broad and ovoid, with a weakly spiny margin, being pinnatipartite. The flowers are produced in dense flower heads which are 2.5–4 cm diameter, pale yellow, but sometimes tinged pink.^[5]

Its specific epithet oleraceum means "vegetable/herbal" in Latin and is a form of holeraceus (oleraceus).^[6]^[7]

Distribution

It is found native throughout Europe, with the exception of Portugal, Albania, North Macedonia, Greece, Crimea, Ciscaucasia, Povolzhye, and the Mediterranean islands. It is found naturalised in the British Isles, Finland, and Central Siberia.^[8] It is also native to West Siberia, the Altai, and Kazakhstan.^[9]

Usage

For cooking: In salads the young stems and leaves are edible, and cultivated for food in Japan and India.

Gallery

Seedling
Stem (cross-section)
Stem (halved)
Basal leaves
Stalk leaves
Bolting
Flowerheads
Involucre
Blooming
Flower
Flower (cross-section)

References

^ by Swedish botanist C. A. M. Lindman (1856–1928), taken from his book(s) Bilder ur Nordens Flora (first edition published 1901–1905, supplemented edition 1917–1926?).
^ The Plant List, Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop.
^ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
^ Altervista Flora Italiana, Cardo giallastro, Siberian thistle, Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop. includes photos and European distribution map
^ Mansfield crop database: Cirsium oleraceum Archived 2007-03-05 at archive.today
^ Parker, Peter (2018). A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners. Little Brown Book Group. p. 328. ISBN 978-1-4087-0615-2. oleraceus, holeraceus = relating to vegetables or kitchen garden
^ Whitney, William Dwight (1899). The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia. Century Co. p. 2856. L. holeraceus, prop. oleraceus, herb-like, holus, prop. olus (oler-), herbs, vegetables
^ Greuter, W. (2006–2024). "Cirsium oleraceum". Euro+Med PlantBase.
^ Kew Royal Botanical Gardens (2025). "Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop". Plants of the World Online.

[1] y Swedish botanist C. A. M. Lindman (1856–1928), taken from his book(s) Bilder ur Nordens Flora (first edition published 1901–1905, supplemented edition 1917–1926?).

[2] The Plant List, Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop.

[BSBI07-3] BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.

[4] Altervista Flora Italiana, Cardo giallastro, Siberian thistle, Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop. includes photos and European distribution map

[5] Mansfield crop database: Cirsium oleraceum Archived 2007-03-05 at archive.today

[6] Parker, Peter (2018). A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners. Little Brown Book Group. p. 328. ISBN 978-1-4087-0615-2. oleraceus, holeraceus = relating to vegetables or kitchen garden

[7] Whitney, William Dwight (1899). The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia. Century Co. p. 2856. L. holeraceus, prop. oleraceus, herb-like, holus, prop. olus (oler-), herbs, vegetables

[8] Greuter, W. (2006–2024). "Cirsium oleraceum". Euro+Med PlantBase.

[9] Kew Royal Botanical Gardens (2025). "Cirsium oleraceum (L.) Scop". Plants of the World Online.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]