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Scientific name: Cirsium occidentale var. candidissimum

Family: Sunflower or Asteraceae

Tribe: Cynareae

Genus: Cirsium

Blooms: Apr–Sept

Plant Height: 0.4–2 m

Habitat: Dry slopes, generally near coast

About: The varieties of Cirsium occidentale all have more or less densely cobwebby heads and long, generally leafless peduncles. Subtle differences in the form of the phyllaries (all spine-tipped in this genus), the color of the flowers and the degree of cobwebbiness separate them. The red to reddish-purple flowers of this variety are most similar to Venus Thistle, with spreading or down-curving phyllaries. But the leaves, stem and heads are distinguished by their extraordinarily dense, white-tomentose cobwebbiness. Only the spiny tips of the phyllaries are without the cobwebbiness.

https://montereywildflowers.com/asteraceae-thistle-cirsium/