Sonchus asper | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Asterales |
Family: | Asteraceae |
Genus: | Sonchus |
Species: | S. asper
|
Binomial name | |
Sonchus asper (
L.) Hill 1769
| |
Synonyms [1] | |
Synonymy
|
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.
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]
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]
Sonchus asper | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Asterales |
Family: | Asteraceae |
Genus: | Sonchus |
Species: | S. asper
|
Binomial name | |
Sonchus asper (
L.) Hill 1769
| |
Synonyms [1] | |
Synonymy
|
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.
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]
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]