Centaurea sulphurea is native to Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Spain and it is known on other continents as an introduced species (GRIN, GBIF). It is one of the closest relatives to Centaurea solstitialis, an extremely invasive thistle in California, but Centaurea sulphurea has only established several populations in California since its introduction in the mid-19th century.
Centaurea sulphurea is an annual herb species in the Asteraceae family which resembles yellow star thistle Centaurea solstitialis. C. sulphurea grows up to 10 dm tall and has toothed leaves and stem wings about 5 to 6 mm wide. The foliage is often yellowish green and sparsely covered with stiff hairs. The length of phyllaries as a unit (involucre) can be up to 30 mm, larger than C. solstitialis. The seeds are also larger than C. solstitialis, up to 8 mm long and a glossy dark brown often faintly streaked with tan. (DiTomaso and Healy 2007; Jepson eFlora).
Not available as an ornamental.