It is for sure not an artichoke!! Looks vaguely boraginaceous to me.

Here is another shot of it

Reminds me of Echium vulgare?

I think Ted's got it. Paterson's Curse, apparently.

I didn't know E. plantagineum existed. Nice call! How do you distinguish? Stamen length? Why is it a curse?

Paterson (or Patterson)'s Curse is an Australian name.

Quote Wiki " In the 1880s, it was introduced to Australia, probably both as an accidental contaminant of pasture seed and as an ornamental plant. Reportedly, both names for the plant derive from Jane Paterson or Patterson, an early settler of the country near Albury. She brought the first seeds from Europe to beautify a garden, and then could only watch helplessly as the weed infested previously productive pastures for many miles around. "

It is toxic to many animals.

Fof

Either species is likely to be considered invasive in much of the US. I'd get rid of it before it goes to seed and creates more of a problem.

Vulgare is prickly all over, Jay.

I've had a relationship with Echium vulgare for decades now. I saw it along the highway in Michigan while traveling to Macinac island and those magnetic blue/pink flowers had me. I fumbled around for a few years trying to get seeds and have them germinate, but I finally did and then grew it for decades. ( in various places and sometimes purposefully torturing it!). And of course it seeded EVERYWHERE! I'm trying to attain a 100% native garden and it was troubling me to get rid of it with the bees loving it so much, but my native Canada wild rye saved me the trouble and completely eradicated the mother and all the babies. I love watching native plants beat the crap out of these alien, noxious, invasives! The mulleins and teasle are taking a severe beating too this year with all the rain. VB is like sticky/prickly right? not thorny/prickly? ( how quickly we forget!) lol. :)

Yes, sticky prickly. It's native here but not that common.

Thanks everyone