Creeping thistle pollen

Cirsium arvense

Pale creamy yellow, in the yellow range.

FloweringJuly to September

PollenFair

NectarGood

SeasonSummer, Autumn

WhereFarmland, Waste and verge, Garden

A weed to the farmer but a steady midsummer earner once it opens.

Creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense) in flower — Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons

Easy to mistake for these

Closest pollen colours in our set, measured the same way the pollen identifier scores a match. Colour alone will not settle it, so check the flowering months and what is actually growing near your hives.

Sweet chestnutJune to July GorseAll year, peak spring AshApril to May ComfreyMay to July AlderFebruary to March

Confused with in the field

Noted by name in our own records, rather than worked out from the colour.

PearReddish yellow KnapweedVery pale olive cream

Out at about the same time

Bell heatherPale dull lilac grey Field scabiousDark brick orange-red Globe thistleWhitish, pale cream Himalayan balsamGhostly white Ling heatherWhitish cream MarjoramDull tan-brown

Saw a load like this going in?

Sample the colour against all 89 plants, then keep a forage record per hive.

Pollen identifier