Dipsacus fullonum
Common names
wild teasel
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Herbs - Dicotyledons other than Composites
Flower colours
Red/Pink, Violet/Purple
Similar taxa
Wild teasel grows to about 1.8 m with elongated dark green leaves and a white midrib. These are joined tightly at the stem opposite to another leaf. The base of the stem itself is square and ridged with spines running along the length but these are particularly noticeable towards the flower head. The seed head is almost conical with sharp spines covering the entire flower surface. These are pale green and they turn wheat brown as the head dies and dries. The narrow and tapering bracts curve around the oval seed head. Small violet-pink flowers appear between the curved bracts in mid to late summer. (Ermert and Clapp 1998)
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Synonyms
Dipsacus sylvestris Huds.
Ecology
Year naturalised
1878
Origin
S., W., and C. Europe, to Ukraine and Iran
Life cycle and dispersal
Wild teasel self-seeds quite freely. Wind dispersed.
Other information
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
DIPFUL