[Thistles: The Genus Cirsium East of the Cascade Mts. of Oregon and Washington]
Peck's Thistle, Steen's Mountain Thistle
Cirsium eatonii var. peckii
Synonym: Cirsium peckii
The photo above shows the terminal flower head of Peck's thistle as seen along the north loop road on the Steens Mt, Harney County, OR.......July 6, 2004.
Characteristics:
Peck's thistle is a native thistle with a single erect stem (or several unbranched stems arising from the base) having flower heads clustered at the base
of each leaf along the stem. Plants range from two to four feet tall. Peck's thistle flowers in July and August.
Habitat:
Peck's thistle may be found on dry, open, rocky or gravelly slopes or meadows. It can be found from the foothills to the alpine summits of the Steens Mt.
Range:
Peck's thistle is endemic to the Steens Mt. in Harney County, OR or the nearby
Pueblo Mts. It is fairly abundant within its range but is considered rare. Those who like to pull weeds should desist from pulling thistles along the roads in the Steens Mt area unless they are sure they are pulling weedy thistles rather than this attractive plant!
Steens Mountain thistle as seen along the North Loop Road (with bottlebrush squirreltail: Elymus elymoides at its foot) about one-half mile downhill from the Kiger Gorge Overlook, Steens Mountain, Harney County, Oregon.........August 31, 2011.
- 
- 
Additional close-up photos of Steen's Mountain thistle as seen along the North Loop Road several hundred meters downhill from the springs at the head of Fish Creek, Steens Mountain, Harney County, Oregon........August 31, 2011.
Fruits of the Steens Mountain thistle as seen at Fish Lake Campground, Steens Mountain, Harney County, Oregon.......September 3, 2011.
- 
Steens Mountain thistle as seen along the South Loop Road at the upper end of the Rooster Comb, Steens Mountain.........July 9, 2014.
Steens Mountain thistle as seen at the East Rim Viewpoint, Steens Mountain..........July 11, 2014.
- 
- 
- 
Close-up images of the basal leaf rosettes and fruits of Steens Mountain thistles along the South Loop Road about one mile west of the East Rim Viewpoint, Steens Mountain.........September 20, 2015.
The photo above shows the terminal flower head of Peck's thistle as seen along the north loop road on the Steens Mt, Harney County, OR........July 6, 2004.
The photo above shows both Peck's thistle and Hymenoxys hoopesii along the north loop road on the Steens Mt........July 6, 2004.
Paul Slichter