Keep a lookout for it and if anyone wants to try planting it I have seeds. It is however an impressive and interesting weed. Prickly lettuce is a weed and can become a nuisance like any plant that proliferates in areas in which it is not wanted. virosa is by far the more dangerous as it contains a more concentrated form of the sap. Although it is rare massive doses can cause cardiac paralysis. Again caution is advised, as at least one case of poisoning was reported from ingesting the plant in May. The young shoots are edible and should not contain any of the active ingredient. There have been documented cases where it has caused hallucinations, severe agitation, vomiting, semi-consciousness and other symptoms. While this compound in not as potent as opium it is not safe to use without consulting a practitioner versed in dosage. It does not have the impact of opium, nor is it addictive. As far back in written record as ancient Egypt the sap from the plant has been used to relieve pain and for its and narcotic and sedative properties. An alternate name for the plant is opium lettuce. The genus name Lactuca refers to this sap and it is what makes prickly lettuce interesting. The first year form is a stemless rosette. The plant is a biennial and this stem only forms the second year. There may be red dots on the stem or reddish areas. The stem is waxy and contains a milky sap. The is only one stem although there may be some minor branching at the top when the flowers appear. There is a leaf at each node and the bottoms of the stem may be prickly. The stems are 2 to 7 feet tall and hollow. It contains one seed that, when ready for release, has a small puff like a dandelion. The fruit is rounded at the bottom and narrow at the top with a tuft at one end. Flower buds are green and tear drop shaped. There may be multiple flower clusters as the plant tends to branch at the top. Each flower is attached with a small stem. They are yellow, daisy like and less than ½ inch across. The flowers appear at the top of the stem in loosely arranged terminal clusters. These prickles resemble small hairs on the leaf bottom but along the mid rib they are sharper and very distinctive. and other plants with saw-toothed leaves is the prickles on the underside of the leaves. The main form of identification and what distinguishes it from dandelion, its cousin L. Until the main stem forms the rosette of leaves may be easily mistaken for a dandelion.
They are alternate on the stem and decrease in size as they travel upward. The size depends on the size of the plant but they can be as long as 12 inches and as wide as 4 inches. The stems and leaves contain a white milky latex. They are saw-toothed much like a dandelion. Prickly lettuce is an erect annual or biennial with a thick, deep taproot. The species name serriola describes the leaves.
Wild lettuce how to#
So if you are wondering what that huge plant in your yard is here is how to identify wild lettuce. It is a spectacular plant and hard to overlook. While prickly lettuce is normally found growing at its lower range of 2-3 feet and has soared to its maximum range of 7-8 feet with all of the rain that we have had this year.
While it might prefer fertile soil it will grow in any sunny location where the soil has been disturbed. It will quite cheerfully grow out of cracks in cement, out of brick walls and in any seam between structures so not only those with available soil will be seeing this one but city dwellers may find it growing in odd spots as well. This plant is quite common and has the ability to grow in some very extraordinary places. This form of wild lettuce was introduced from Eurasia but now grows wild in every state except Alaska.
One that you might have noticed is prickly lettuce (Lactuca serriola). Not only have they proliferated like the meaning of the word but some of them have reached an extraordinary size. A guide to the weeds of Western Australia, Second Edition, The Weeds Society of Western Australia, Victoria Park, Western Australia.This has been a great year for weeds. Hussey, B.M.J., Keighery, G.J., Dodd, J., Lloyd, S.G. January, February, March, April, May Flower colour/s High: major threat to the conservation values of Banksia woodlands and South-West Province. Scattered along drainage lines in the wetter areas of the Eremaean and South-West Provinces. It is more slender than Prickly Lettuce and the leaves are narrow and deeply lobed with no prickles.The flower head has pale yellow ray florets with toothed tips. Wild Lettuce is a rigid, erect annual or biennial weed growing from a taproot to about 1 m high. It is native to Eurasia but how it came to Western Australia isn’t documented. This weed is very similar to Lactuca serriola (the Prickly Lettuce) except that it has no prickles.
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