Prickly Lettuce

Prickly Lettuce

Lactuca serriola L.

Asteraceae (Aster Family)

▲ young plants in rosette stage

▲ ▼ young plants starting to bolt, showing vertical orientation of leaves

▲ spines on underside of leaves along midveins

▲ ▼ flowering plants

▲ ▼ flowers and inflorescence

▲ ▼ stem leaves, showing spines on midvein underneath leaf

Wild lettuce/Prickly lettuce:

winter or summer annual, first producing rosette of grey-green, indented leaves with spines on margin
when it forms a flowering stalk, the leaves are held more vertically; stem grows 2-6' tall
flowers are in a more panicle terminal inflorescence with yellow petals; seeds have "parachute" to aid in wind dispersal
found in gardens, roadsides, fencerows, wasteland