Musk Thistle

this beautiful flower, carduus nutans, is classified as a noxious invasive plant in the u.s. it was introduced in the early 1800's and it native to parts of europe and asia. the thistles are edible and horses love them. hummingbirds love to gather their nectar and the down from the seed can be used to make paper. it is a striking plant that grows over 6 feet tall and has very large flower heads.

diane and i were walking along the monon trail on friday and went into the woods. there we saw a group of ecological guys with poison in spray containers. i asked them what they were doing with the poison and they said they were trying to get rid of invasive plants in the area, especially honeysuckle. yes, the very beautiful honeysuckle i have been photographing. i think it is interesting that guys are poisoning invasive plants as an ecological measure. someone is not thinking clearly here. besides, the honeysuckle is a plant whose red berries are favorite food for birds. this means the birds continuallly replant it as they eat, fly and poop. this plant is not going away! maybe i will get to have my say sometime on this one.

i hope every had a wonderful weekend. it was a glorious, windy, and changeable day. started out bright and blue, clouds moved it, sometimes covering the sun, rained for a short time and then the clouds became few as the sky and sun shone through. hubby played golf. i went to bally's and stopped on the way to blip the thistles. the thistles are between the city circular I 465 and road to bally's. you can see the interstate in the background.

best to everyone.