Scientific Family
Asteraceae
Other common names
wild lettuce
Plant type
Forbs and Subshrubs
Origin
Introduced
Lifecycle
Biennial or annual
Height
To 6 feet
Riparian
No
A weed which grows from a large taproot with yellow flower heads of ray flowers and leafy stems filled with a milky juice. The principal stem branches are where flowering occurs, sometimes flower heads are on a few short branches from the base.
Annual herb; leafy-stemmed with milky sap. leaves oblong or elliptic, bearing small spines, dissected to not lobed; flower head open with spreading branches; flowers head of yellow ray flowers.
Habitat
Grows along roadsides and disturbed areas such as pastures or cultivated fields. Grows most abundantly on nutrient-rich soils.
Plant Community
Disturbed Areas
Low elevation
1000
High elevation
8000
Flower Characteristics
Composed solely of ray flowers which are about 1/3 inch wide, on short stalks that grow on the branched, upper stems; when in seed forms miniature dandelion-like tufts.
Flower color
Yellow
Flower shape
Daisy or dandelion-like
Tubular
No
First bloom month
May
Last bloom month
October
Flower clusters
Rounded
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Variable in shape and size, to 10 inches long at base, graduating to smaller size on upper stems. The upper leaf surface is hairless, but there are prickles along the edge. The midrib of the lower leaf surface is lined with prickles.
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf color
Bluish-green
Leaf shape
Pinnatifid
Leaf margin
Lobed
Leaves clasp
Yes
Leaf hairs
Leaves & stems
Spines
Yes
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Each flower head has 6 to 30 flattened fruits with 5 to 7 parallel ridges on each side. The single-seeded fruit has a tuft of soft white bristles (pappus) that are about 1/10 inch long on a slender beak that is nearly as long as the fruit.
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit color
Gray or yellowish, brownish