In addition to the flower buds of milk thistle, which are comparable to artichokes in culinary way, the large, wavy leaves with numerous thorns are also edible. The thorns must be removed, of course. The leaf vegetable prepared in this way is edible raw and cooked. Peeled and overnight watered (reduces bitterness) stems can be steamed and eaten as vegetables. Today, milk thistle is cultivated as a medically effective plant.

The often biennial plants form a leaf rosette in the first year, which can have a diameter of more than one meter, but usually remains smaller. An important characteristic of milk thistle is the white marbling along the leaf nerve and the white, net-like fluffing of the stems. The numerous trivial names often refer to milk and Mary and have their origin in a legend, according to which the white coloration should come from the milk of the mother of Jesus.

• Edible Leaves
• Also edible Flowers Roots
• Culinary Group Leaf vegetable Wild vegetable
• Taste tart/bitter
• Trivial Names Mariendistel, Christi Krone, Donnerdistel, Fieberdistel, Fechdistel, Frauendistel, Heilandsdistel, Cardus marianus, Milk thistle, Blessed milkthistle, Marian thistle, Mary thistle, Saint Mary's thistle, Mediterranean milk thistle, Variegated thistle, Scotch thistle, Chardon-Marie, Artichaut sauvage, Chardon argenté, Chardon de Notre-Dame, Chardon marbré, Epine blanche, Lait de Notre-Dame, Silybe de Marie, Cardo mariano, Cardo di Santa Maria
• Size 32 cm
• Taxonomy Asteraceae (Composite family) Silybum marianum
• Origin Mediterraneum, Macaronesia, Near East (Map)
• Locality Wissenschaftsgarten Frankfurt (FRG) 2018