Centaurea melitensis L., Sp. Pl. 912. 1753; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 3: 385. 1881.

Herbs, annual or bi&nnial, 20 - 70 cm high, pubescent or glabrous; stems winged above, sparingly branched from middle. Lower leaves lanceolate, lyrate-pinnatifid to sinuately lobed; upper cauline leaves tinear, decurrent. Heads ca 1 cm across, ovoid-globose, solitary or in groups of 2 - 3. Involucral bracts glabrous or puberulous, ending in a spreading and recurved spine, margins spinulose or with short lateral spines on each side. Florets yellow, glandular. Achenes ca 2 mm long, puberulous. Pappus ca 2 mm long.

Fl. & Fr. June - Sept.

Distrib. India: Tamil Nadu.

Westwards to Atlantic.

Notes. Usually cultivated, sometimes found as an escape.