DEPARTMENT OF PRIMARY INDUSTRIES
Saffron Thistle (Carthamus lanatus) (Nox)
Invasiveness Assessment | Impact Assessment | Potential Distribution | Present Distribution
| Scientific name: | Carthamus glaucus L. |  Mature Saffron Thistle (image courtesy Andrew Steed) |
Common Name: | Saffron thistle | |
Status: | Regionally Controlled in the Wimmera, Port Phillip & Westernport (West and East), Goulburn Broken, North East, West Gippsland and East Gippsland CMAs. Restricted in the Mallee, North Central, Glenelg-Hopkins and Corangamite CMAs. | |
Habitat: | Warm-temperate and subtropical semi-arid areas often growing on soils of low fertility in areas receiving 300 to 600 mm of annual rainfall (Parsons and Cuthbertson 1992). It occurs as a weed in cultivated paddocks, poor pastures and neglected areas, but is rarely found in better rainfall areas where pasture competition restricts its development (Parsons and Cuthbertson 1992). Saffron thistle invades lowland grassland and grassy woodland (Carr et al 1992). |
 Early growth stage of Saffron Thistle (image courtesy Andrew Steed) |  Saffron Thistle flower head (image courtesy Andrew Steed) |  Young Saffron Thistle (image courtesy Andrew Steed) |
Related Links
Further information on Saffron Thistle can be found on the DPI Website, Pest Plant Notes.
Weed Identification Note for Saffron Thistle - on the Weeds Australia website (external link). Information is provided on the generalised current distribution in Australia as well as other information such as origin, distinguishing features, dispersal etc.
© The State of Victoria, 1996 - 2008.
This document was last reviewed on 24/09/2008