Swamp Thistle



Swamp Thistle
Cirsium muticum

Now here's a thistle everyone can love. It's native, it's found in swamps, it doesn't take over and choke out everything else, it's pretty, it's utilized by all sorts of critters and it's a typical part of a northern Indiana wetland.

It can be distinguished from other thistles by habitat, by it's cobwebby looking flower heads (look close), deeply lobed leaves, and a ribbed stem without prickers.
 

Look close at the flower head and it has a whitish, cobwebby appearance

Note the ribbed stem