Centaurea

矢車菊屬（Centaurea），屬於菊科，是大約350至500種草本植物和薊的開花植物之屬，大多都生長在舊大陸中。同是矢車菊屬，另外種類包括星薊、矢車菊、黑矢車菊屬等等。一些種類培養作裝飾植物，栽種在庭院裡。

種類

矢車菊屬的種類有：

• Centaurea adpressa
• Centaurea aggregata
• Centaurea alpestris
• Centaurea alpina
• Centaurea americana – American Star-thistle
• Centaurea argentea
• Centaurea aspera – Rough Star-thistle
• Centaurea atropurpurea
• Centaurea babylonica
• Centaurea behen
• Centaurea bella
• Centaurea bovina
• Centaurea bulbosa
• Centaurea cachinalensis
• Centaurea calcitrapa – 紫星薊（Purple Star Thistle or Caltrop - Europe）
• Centaurea calcitrapoides
• Centaurea chilensis
• Centaurea cineraria – Dusty Miller
• Centaurea clementei
• Centaurea cyanus – 矢車菊（Cornflower）
• Centaurea dealbata
• Centaurea debeauxii
• Centaurea depressa
• Centaurea diffusa – 白矢車菊（Diffuse Knapweed）
• Centaurea diluta
• Centaurea dschungarica
• Centaurea eriophora
• Centaurea floccosa
• Centaurea gayana
• Centaurea glastifolia
• Centaurea grinensis
• Centaurea horrida
• Centaurea hypoleuca
• Centaurea iberica – A spiny Mediterranean species thought to be the "thistle" mentioned in Genesis
• Centaurea imperialis
• Centaurea jacea
• Centaurea kasakorum
• Centaurea kopetaghensis
• Centaurea kotschyana
• Centaurea leucophylla
• Centaurea macrocephala
• Centaurea maculosa – Spotted Knapweed; eastern Europe; introduced in North America, now an invasive weed which releases a toxin that reduces growth of forage species.
• Centaurea marschalliana
• Centaurea melitensis
• Centaurea moschata - Sweet Sultan
• Centaurea monocephala
• Centaurea montana – Perennial Cornflower
• Centaurea nigra – Black Knapweed or Common Knapweed
• Centaurea nigrescens – 提洛爾矢車菊（Tyrol Knapweed）; southern and eastern Europe
• Centaurea orientalis
• Centaurea ovina
• Centaurea paniculata
• Centaurea phrygia
• Centaurea pindicola
• Centaurea polypodiifolia
• Centaurea pulcherrima
• Centaurea ragusina
• Centaurea repens – Russian Knapweed (also Turkestan Thistle) is a perennial, native to southern Russia and Asia Minor to Altay Mountains and Afghanistan. It is a weed in parts of its native range as well as in places where it has been accidentally naturalized. The flowerhead is lilac and not spiny.
• Centaurea rothrockii
• Centaurea ruthenica
• Centaurea rutifolia
• Centaurea sadleriana – Pannonian knapweed
• Centaurea scabiosa – 市郊矢車菊（Greater Knapweed）
• Centaurea seridis
• Centaurea sibirica
• Centaurea simplicicaulis
• Centaurea solstitialis – 黃星薊（Yellow Star Thistle）; Europe.
• Centaurea squarrosa
• Centaurea stenolepis
• Centaurea stoebe
• Centaurea sulphurea
• Centaurea transalpina
• Centaurea tchihatcheffii - Endangered species, Mogan Lake, Ankara, Turkey

Centaurea tchihatcheffii

• Centaurea trichocephala
• Centaurea triniifolia
• Centaurea triumfettii
• Centaurea uniflora
• Centaurea virgata

花蜜

矢車菊屬生產豐富的花蜜，特別是在高石灰土壤中，主要得益者是收採蜂蜜的蜂農。星薊種類蜂蜜味淡而有濃郁的香味。美國是生產豐富最純正星薊蜂蜜的生產地，但一些奸商以欺騙手法，將之當作銷售作阿巴拉契亞山脈缺乏，珍貴的酸模樹蜂蜜。

高花蜜出產量使得對昆蟲，如蝴蝶、飛蛾、六點榆蟲而言非常有吸引力，其化昆蟲也以矢車菊屬植物為食物。

• 黃星薊 Centaurea solstitialis

• Centaurea cyanus

• 紫星薊

參考書目

• Mabberley, D.J. 1987. The Plant Book. A portable dictionary of the higher plants. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 706 p. ISBN 0-521-34060-8.
• Robbins, W.W., M. K. Bellue, and W. S. Ball. 1970. Weeds of California. State of California, Dept. of Agriculture. 547 p.