photo: legend has it that the Vikings were not prepared for the lowly thorny thistle which grew incredibly well, as each bloom – such as the one here in this photo from Idaho in 2010 – can produce tens of thousands of seeds, growing so prolifically that it provided a natural system for alerting the defenses of the Scot’s under their ruling King Alexander III, perhaps even playing the crucial role in turning back the invaders, at least for a short time.