Before the blizzard of 1888, tumbling rumbleweeds rolled across the flatlands from Dakota's James River to northern Missouri. The weed was identified in Oregon in 1894. California botanical reports do not mention Russian thistle prior to 1891. It was first noticed along railroad tracks at Lancaster, Los Angeles County in 1895. It is believed the seeds arrived in westbound cattle cars.
Russian thistle is abundant today in many parts of Arizona and California.
Of course, the Great Plains were already plagued by another introduced tumbleweed called kochia. But Russia's bouquet of trouble is larger, denser, and has dug into more soil than any other self-seeding weed. The pricklypear cactus can boost beef production in many areas in the Great Plains where it grows. Long a thorn in the side of cattle producers, the pricklypear has proven to be a highly nutritious feed, provided the spines have been singed off. In feeding studies, USDA researchers handraked the cactus from rangeland and singed the spines with a propane torch.