tall thimbleweed

Tall thimbleweed is a common and widespread summer wildflower. It occurs in the United States from Maine to Georgia, west to North Dakota and Oklahoma, and in adjacent Canadian provinces. It is common in Minnesota. It is found in open upland woodlands, upland prairies, savannas, and thickets; on riverbanks, rocky stream banks rocky cliffs and ledges, and roadsides; and in open disturbed areas. It grows under full or partial sun in moderately moist to dry soil.

Tall thimbleweed is a 12″ to 27″ (30 to 100 cm) tall erect perennial. It has a whorl of basal leaves and a single, usually unbranched, flowering stem. The stem has 2 or 3 whorls of leaf-like bracts that resemble the basal leaves but are smaller. A stalk with a single flower rises from the axil of some of the leaves. The flower is white and ¾″ to 1″ (20 to 25 mm) in diameter. The cluster of pistils in the center of the flower elongates in fruit becoming ½″ to 1⅛″ (12 to 28 mm) long and resembling a thimble. This is the feature that gives the species its common name. The “thimble” is less than twice as long as wide and appears very prickly.

Sources

2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 24, 28, 29, 30.

Plant

Inflorescence

Flower

Involucral bracts

A single basal leaf at the bottom and involucral bracts on the stem above

Fruiting head

Location: Cass County

Location: Lebanon Hills Regional Park