Pests
Under Eradication : Yellow Starthistle
Yellow starthistle, Centaurea solstitialis, is one of
the most widespread and prominent non-native annual weed
in most parts of California north of the Tehachapi Mountains.
Thriving in dry fields and along roadsides, this weed
is extremely competitive and crowds out other plants.
With its extremely sharp thorns, it creates a barrier
to animals and people, preventing hikers and others from
enjoying the open spaces. It also is poisonous to horses.
Yellow starthisle is easily recognized by its profuse
1 inch across bright yellow flowers and its stiff, upright,
grayish-white stems and numerous sharp needle thorns.
This weed grows to 1 to 3 feet high. It is most prominent
in mid-summer. The only other plant, which may be confused
with this weed, is Tecolote, Centaurea melititensis,
which reaches its peak in late spring and has much smaller
and less rigid spines and smaller flowers.
The Department has been suppressing populations of
this weed and treating infestations since before 1942 in order
to prevent the spread of this noxious weed. Treatments
currently consist of manual removal of mature plants
and chemical treatment of immature plants.
For more information on this weed, go to http://pi.cdfa.ca.gov/weedinfo
|
