Milk Thistle

(Silybum marianum)

Other Names:
Blessed milkthistle, Marian thistle, Mary thistle, Saint Mary's thistle, Mediterranean milk thistle, variegated thistle, and Scotch thistle

Range:

Introduced invasive
Family:
Asteraceae - Aster, Daisy, Composite, or Sunflower Family

Growth Type:
An upright annual or biennial herbaceous plant.

Height:
Can grow form 1ft to 6ft tall.

Leaves:
The leaves are oblong to lanceolate and 15–60 cm long and typically pinnately lobed, with spiny edges like most thistles. They are hairless, shiny green, with milk-white veins.

Stem/Trunk:
The stem is grooved and may be covered in a light cottony fuzz. The largest specimens have hollow stems.

Root:
Taproot

Flower Season:
In North America S. marianum flowers from June to August.

Flower Appearance:
The red-purple colored flower heads are typically from 1.5 to 4 inches long and wide, surround by hairless bracts, and have triangular, spine-edged appendages, tipped with a stout yellow spine.

Seed/Fruit:
The fruits are black achenes with a simple long white pappus, surrounded by a yellow basal ring. A long pappus acts as a "parachute", supporting seed dispersal by wind.

Miscellaneous characteristics:
N/A

Habitat:
Warm sunny meadows and fields

Parts Used:
Food: Leaves, Stems
Medicine: Seeds

Culinary Uses:
Once the spines have been removed, mIlk thistle can be eaten as a trail nibble. It can be added to salads, and it can be used as a cooked vegetable.

Energetics
Taste: Neutral
Thermal: Neutral
Humidity: Moistening

Traditional Medicinal Uses:
For centuries milk thistle has been used in traditional medicine to treat the gall bladder and the liver. Milk thistle has been demonstrated to lower blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes. Clinical trials have shown it can safely reduce liver enzymes in people suffering from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease JYang et al., 2022.

Medicinal Actions:
Antidiabetic, Hepatic, Hypoglycemic, Hypolipidemic, Tonic: Gallbladder, Tonic: Liver