Russian Thistle

a tumbleweed, not a thistle, recently introduced into the Dakotas in seed from Russia. At first soft and harmless the bracts of the flowering stems form horny, sharp tips exceedingly painful to man or beast after they harden in autumn. In the fall these bushy herbs break off near the ground and go rolling before the wind like American tumbleweeds, scattering their seed everywhere. In dry fields grown to small grains year after year, this Russian tumbleweed becomes a serious pest occupying the ground like clover, but a change of crops and tillage subdues it readily.