Sonchus_asper

<i>Sonchus asper</i>

Sonchus asper

Species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae

Quick Facts Sonchus asper, Scientific classification ...

Sonchus asper, the prickly sow-thistle,[2] rough milk thistle,[3] spiny sowthistle,[4] sharp-fringed sow thistle, or spiny-leaved sow thistle, is a widespread flowering plant in the tribe Cichorieae within the family Asteraceae.

Description

Sonchus asper is an annual or biennial herb sometimes reaching a height of 200 centimetres (6.6 ft) with spiny leaves and yellow flowers resembling those of the dandelion. The leaves are bluish-green, simple, lanceolate, with wavy and sometimes lobed margins, covered in spines on both the margins and beneath. The base of the leaf surrounds the stem. The leaves and stems emit a milky sap when cut. One plant will produce several flat-topped arrays of flower heads, each head containing numerous yellow ray flowers but no disc flowers.[5][6]

Distribution

Sonchus asper is native to Europe, North Africa, and western Asia. It has also become naturalized on other continents and is regarded as a noxious, invasive weed in many places. Its edible leaves make a palatable and nutritious leaf vegetable.[7][8][9][10][11]

It is found in cultivated soil, pastures, roadsides, edges of yards, vacant lots, construction sites, waste areas and in grasslands.[12]

References

  1. [1]
    The Plant List, Sonchus asper (L.) Hill
  2. [2]
    BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  3. [3]
    USDA GRIN Taxonomy
  4. [4]
    USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Sonchus asper". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  5. [5]
    Flora of North America, Sonchus asper (Linnaeus) Hill, 1769. Spiny-leaf sow-thistle, laiteron rude
  6. [6]
    Flora of China, Sonchus asper (Linnaeus) Hill, 1769. 花叶滇苦菜 hua ye dian ku cai
  7. [7]
    Altervista Flora Italiana, Sonchus asper (L.) Hill includes photos and European distribution map
  8. [8]
    De la Barra, N. 1997. Reconstrucción y Evolución del Paisaje Vegetal Autóctono de la Zona Urbana y Peri-urbana de la Ciudad de Cochabamba i–v, 1–174. Tesis, Universidad Mayor San Simón, Cochabamba
  9. [9]
    Marticorena, C. & M. Quezada. 1985. Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Chile. Gayana, Botany 42: 1–157
  10. [10]
    Humbert, H. 1923. Les Composées de Madagascar. Mémoires de la Société Linnéenne de Normandie 25: 1–335.
  11. [11]
    Atlas of Living Australia
  12. [12]
    Sonchus oleraceus L. by iewf.org
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