18/09/2026
THISTLE - The beautiful protector 💜
Prickly, resilient, and so much more than meets the eye.
This week we’re celebrating the thistle — a flower that protects itself with sharp spines and protects our wildlife at the same time.
A few of our favourite thistle facts:
🏴 Scotland’s national emblem since the 13th century. Legend has it, Norse Vikings tried to sneak up on sleeping Scottish clansmen barefoot, until one stepped on a thistle and cried out — alerting the clan just in time.
👑 The Order of the Thistle, founded by King James V, is still the highest chivalric honour in Scotland.
🍬 Native American tribes historically chewed the sticky petals of certain thistles like natural chewing gum.
🐝 A true powerhouse for wildlife — it produces huge volumes of rich nectar and pollen, making it top-tier food for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
🐦 Goldfinches in both the UK and America feast on them and line their nests with the soft, fluffy down — adorably known as ‘thistledown’.
🌿 One musk thistle alone can produce 120,000 seeds, and beneath the surface, its deep taproots break up compacted soil and draw essential nutrients up from the subsoil.
Tough, beautiful, and vital. We love it.
Have you spotted any thistles out and about this week? If not, come and see the beautiful ones we have in stock this week.
