Corn Sow-thistle, Göteborg, January 19th, 2002
Sonchus arvensis 
Eva Ekeblad, 2002
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Yesterday a brief spot of sun.
Today rain turning to sleet.
The Corn Sow-thistles
are all spent,
most of the seeds shed,
calycles empty,
brittle stems bowing down
into surrounding vegetation.
This is as should be
this time of the year
for this perennial.
The Annual Sow-thistle
and the Prickly
which is also an annual
don't do this, as a rule.
They're into winter rosettes
and they may - as last winter's
sample of the Annual -
be surprised by winter
while still in bloom.
The main sample
is scanned while still wet.
You can see the difference,
compared to the dried piece
of hollow, fluted stem.