Carduus crispus or Welted thistle is a member of the daisy family Asteraceae

Asteraceae

The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...

. It is a favorite foodplant of caterpillar

Caterpillar

Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...

s of the Painted Lady

Vanessa cardui

Vanessa cardui is a well-known colourful butterfly, known as the Painted Lady, or in North America as the Cosmopolitan. This butterfly has a strange pattern of flying in a sort of screw shape.-Distribution:...

 (Vanessa cardui), which derives its specific epithet, cardui, from their preference for thistles. It's also said to hold alterative and anodyne

Anodyne

In medicine before the 20th century, an anodyne was a medicine that was believed to relieve or soothe pain by lessening the sensitivity of the brain or nervous system In medicine before the 20th century, an anodyne was a medicine that was believed to relieve or soothe pain by lessening the...

properties in its roots.

Extracts from this plant have been found to have anti-cancer properties, the main one of which being Crispine A. The plant is mainly found in Asia and china and grows on waste or uncared for soil