Centaurea

Centaurea is a genus of flowering plants, family Asteraceae, comprising over 700 species, commonly called centaury, starthistles, knapweeds or centaureas, with some called bluets and the Plectocephalus group known as basketflowers; the genus is found exclusively north of the equator, predominantly in the Eastern Hemisphere, with the Middle East and surrounding regions particularly species-rich. Members are herbaceous, thistle-like flowering plants with robust, weedy growth patterns, leaves typically deeply divided into elongated lobes and becoming entire toward the top, spiny in some species; flower heads display intense blues, reds, yellows or lighter mixed colors, with disk flowers often differing in color and morphology from the sterile ray flowers, each head sitting atop a cup or basket-like cluster of scaly bracts. Many species, especially those from arid regions, possess long, strong taproots.