“Then the children of Calatin came down into the valley, and the same way as before they took thistle-stalks and the little fuzz-balls and withered leaves and put on them the appearance of troops of armed men so that there seemed to be no hill or no place outside the whole valley but was filled with battalions, coming hundred by hundred.”
Lady Gregory, Cuchulain of Muirthemne, 1903
Thistle or Silybum marianum (milk thistle) Onopordum acanthium (Scotch thistle), Cirsium vulgare (common thistle) and Carlina vulgaris are also called Marian Thistle, Mary’s Thistle, spotted thistle, lady’s thistle, bull thistle, spear thistle, sow thistle or common thistle. They’re called feochadán in Gaeilge and gìogan or cluaran in Scots Gaelic. Milk thistle gets its common name from the milky-white liquid that runs off the plant’s leaves and stems when they’re broken or crushed.
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Isla Skye
Isla Skye is an American Celtic scholar, a mother of 3, elementary teacher for 21 years as well as an author and herbalist that splits her time between the States and Ireland. She has studied the druids and related practices for over 20 years. She is a published author of children’s books as well as other folkloric literature and is currently working through an M.A. in Celtic Studies. Her hobbies are family time, camping, hiking, reading, writing and research.
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