Texas thistle flower head

Click for greater detail.

And here’s the kind of flower head that the bud of a Texas thistle, Cirsium texanum, opens out into. The date this time was April 19, and during the 15 or so minutes it took for the annual state inspection of my car to be carried out, I wandered over to the undeveloped lot next to the auto repair shop and photographed some of the thistles I’d noticed growing there. All I needed in order for my car to pass inspection was a new windshield wiper, and all you need to do to pass through my blog today is glance at this colorful flower head and, I hope, give your seal of approval.

© 2012 Steven Schwartzman