With all that researching over the past few hours, I felt like it was necessary to share my beautiful weed with the world. So I did. You can now find my “purple pineapple weed” at WikiSpecies. I even uploaded one of my photos there. So now the world can find “purple pineapple weed” with the click of a mouse. Here’s the interesting stuff I found out via my comments section from the last post (after everyone told me it was a thistle!):
Everyone was wrong! It isn’t a noxious weed, is native to the area, and is actually related to a carrot! The common name is “LEAVENWORTH ERYNGO”. What an awful name for such a cool-looking weed.
Here’s info from a Kansas site: Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses
Apparently the Leavenworth Eryngo likes the limestone hills as much as I do:
“Habitat: Dry, rocky prairies, roadsides, open woodlands, and waste areas, most abundant on limestone or chalk soils.”
Here’s another photo site:
Eryngium leavenworthii – Common Name: Leavenworth’s Eryngo
Here are some nicknames names for that genus:
beethistle
button snakeroot
eryngo
rattlesnake master
rattlesnakemaster
sea holly
spiritweed
I love “beethistle”. “Rattlesnakemaster” sounds formidable. The plant itself is extremely unfriendly when touched – we found out the hard way. When I got the last photo (the one with the bee), there were multiple bees (one bumble bee and two honey bees) on one flower! I just couldn’t get them to sit still long enough for a photo op. All four of these shots were in the months between August and November of 2007. I haven’t seen any of this in bloom yet this year… but it is early, only May!
Here again are a few shots of the plant that I have taken:
This bee-girl loves her beethistle (that isn’t thistle at all) and will continue to plant it. I still say it looks like a pineapple. So there!
Love in Him,
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How very interesting. The photos are great. SO vivid. 🙂 Thanks for sharing. I can see what you’re so popular. You most the most peculiar things. 😀
Love ya!
I knew it really wasn’t a thistle. I was just joking with you. LOL
Did you know this about it: The thistle-like plant is named for frontier Army surgeon and amateur botanist, Dr. Melines Conklin Leavenworth (1796-1862).
Cool. Still looks like a spiky plant. Neat, but keep them in Austin!
Here’s someone else who loves that plant too! http://www.robsplants.com/plants/EryngLeave.php
It really is neat looking. Have you checked out the roots to see if it looks like a carrot since it’s in the same family?
You’re somebody now – you wrote an article for Wikipedia!!! 🙂
THanks for the blog saved me lots of time and research – we have this weed in Texas too. I think it is very pretty.