Have You Seen Cotton Thistle?

There’s a plant the Council’s Biosecurity team does not want to see blooming in the gardens of Marlborough; the cotton thistle.

It’s occasionally grown by gardeners but it’s a triffid, says Council biosecurity officer Ben Minehan.

The cotton thistle thrives in Marlborough’s coastal environment and it easily tolerates a high mountainous environment too but it is one of the introduced plant species that has become a surveillance pest plant in this region because it displaces desirable pasture species and spreads quickly. We suspect grazing sheep are spreading the seeds when they stick in their wool.

The latest colony of thriving cotton thistle was found in an urban garden.

The Marlborough District Council works at community level to eradicate unwanted exotic plants that threaten our precious land and water resources.

• If you see this pest plant anywhere, please contact Marlborough District Council’s Biosecurity Section on Ph: 520 7400.