Scolymus hispanicus L.
Family: COMPOSITAE (ASTERACEAE)
Genus: Scolymus
Catalan common name: Card de moro. Cardelina.
Spanish common name: Cardillo. Tagarmina.
Province distribution: Balearic Islands.
Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera.
Uses and properties: Edible or foodstuffs.
IUCN Category: Least concern
Life-forms: Hemicryptophyte.
Habitats: Cultivated fields, path and road sides, disturbed zones.
Characteristics: This thistle can grow up to two metres in height, and the leaves and stems are covered with hard and sharp spiny emergences. Leaves are rigid, covering all the stems. Can be differentiated from the majority of the other thistles by its yellow flowers that are completely liguled (in contrast tithe rest of the thistles, which are tubuled). These flowers emerge from the leaf axils and are hidden and protected by these same organs. Flowers in spring until the beginning of summer.