Stats

Lifespan

Perennial

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Temperate grassland

Range

Europe

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Toxins

Status

Common

About

This perennial herb grows in dry meadows and open woodlands across Europe. Its flower heads are protected by dark, overlapping scales that feel like stiff paper.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

• View on iNaturalist →

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Asterales

Family

Asteraceae

Genus

Centaurea

Species

Centaurea jacea