Donald A. Windsor
Four thistle species live in Chenango County. Ranked in order of the most common to the least, they are: Canada, Bull, Pasture, and Welted. Note that, of the four, only the Pasture Thistle is listed as native by this authoritative reference.
Mitchell, Richard S. ; Tucker, Gordon C. Revised Checklist of New York State Plants. Albany, NY: New York State Museum. 1997. 400 pages. The exact page numbers appear in [] below.Canada Thistle Cirsium arvense Alien [242]
Bull Thistle Cirsium vulgare Alien [242]
Pasture Thistle Cirsium pumilum Native [242]
Welted Thistle Carduus crispus Alien [240]
We also have Sow Thistles, which are not true thistles.
Here is the Spiny-leaved Sowthistle Sonchus asper Alien [264]
=============================================