Onopordum nervosum

RHS Plant Profile
reticulate thistle

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reticulate thistle visionspictures.com
reticulate thistle visionspictures.com

Other common names

Moor's cotton thistle

Synonyms

Onopordum arabicum

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Annual Biennial
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A tap-rooted biennial forming a rosette of silvery-grey, spiny leaves to 50cm long, with prominent pale veins. Leafy, branched flowering stems to 2.5m tall are produced in the summer of the second year, bearing clusters of rounded, spiny-bracted, rosy-purple flower-heads

Position

Full sun

Soil Types

Chalk, Loam, Sand

Max Height

1.5-2.5 metres

Max Spread

0.5-1 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
1–2 years
Max Spread
0.5-1 metres
Max Height
1.5-2.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Chalk Loam Sand
Moisture
Well–drained
pH
Alkaline or Neutral

Position

Full sun
Aspect
South–facing or West–facing
Exposure
Exposed or Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H7

Colour & Scent

Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Asteraceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Columnar upright
Genus
Onopordum are are upright biennials with a basal rosette of simple or pinnately lobed, grey-hairy leaves and large, thistle-like, pink or purple flower-heads in summer
Name Status
Correct

How to Grow

Cultivation

Grow in fertile, well-drained neutral to slightly alkaline soil in full sun; may self-seed freely. Ideal for a gravel garden or wild areas

Propagation

Propagate by seed sown in containers in a cold frame, or in situ in autumn or spring

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • Architectural
  • Coastal
  • Gravel garden
  • Wildlife gardens
  • Cottage and informal garden

Pruning

No pruning required

Pests

May be susceptible to slugs and snails

Diseases

Generally disease-free