Carlina lanata L.

Family: COMPOSITAE (ASTERACEAE)

Genus: Carlina

Catalan common name: Card de cabeceta.

Spanish common name: Cardo muelle enano. Cardo peludillo.

Province distribution: Alacant. Balearic Islands. Barcelona. Castelló. Girona. Lleida. Tarragona. València.

Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera. Cabrera.

General distribution (Phytogeography): Mediterranean

IUCN Category: LCLeast concern

Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Life-forms: Terophyte.

Habitats: Cultivated fields, path and road sides, disturbed zones. Path and road sides.

Characteristics: An annual plant, with spiny leaves and capitula; the leaves are hard and rigid. The whole plant is a light green colour. The capitula have large, exterior bracts armed with spines and smaller interior ones that look like reddish petals. It can be mistaken for Carthamus lanatus which lives and flowers at similar times and places. They can be differentiated due to the greatly divided leaves of Carthamus and to the interior reddish bracts of Carlina. It lives in moors and dry fields; it flowers at the beginning of summer.