Stats

Lifespan

Annual

Size

Medium

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Temperate grassland

Range

Eurasia

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Spines

Status

Uncommon

About

The Prickly Russian Thistle, scientifically known as Salsola tragus, is a flowering plant that produces tumbleweeds. It is one of the most common and most conspicuous plant species in the United States, often found in arid and semi-arid regions.

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

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Caryophyllales

Family

Amaranthaceae

Genus

Salsola

Species

Salsola tragus