Tromped through and around in the field and discovered that the infestion of these thistles has, big surprise, increased over last year. I also discovered that my work with The Beast, while it didn’t eliminate the invasive grass, it did keep it from going to seed where. I cut. However, I didn’t manage to cut all of it down, just most of it and the thickest patches. I’ll take that progress, though.
Little known fact: I called these plants prickers when I was a kid. I must have gotten that term from The Botanist. It’s the technical term for the wee and annoying thorns they sprout on stems, leaves, everywhere.
Apologies to Sky Watchers: dull overcast during the final daylight hours; no even boring sunset.
UPDATE Apologies to botanists: the thorny parts are called prickles; I in turn created (pretty sure) a term for the whole plant: prickers.