XLactuca serriola - Prickly LettuceX
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Prickly Lettuce -or- China lettuce -or- Wild Lettuce -or- Compass Plant (Lactuca serriola), family Asteraceae (Aster/Sunflower)
This species is an example of a little plant that packs a lot of power. Including classification as an invasive weed in some pretty extensive areas. The genus Lactuca has 13 species, this one being both annual and biennial herbs. This species is the closest wild example of cultivated lettuce.
USES: There is only one recorded use of Wild Lettuce by Native Americans: Navajo, Ramah - Compound decoction of plant used as a ceremonial emetic. Plants For a Future has more: Young leaves - raw or cooked. A bitter flavour. The young tender leaves are mild and make an excellent salad but the whole plant becomes bitter as it gets older, especially when coming into flower. As a potherb it needs very little cooking. Large quantities can cause digestive upsets. Young shoots - cooked. Used as an asparagus substitute. An edible oil is obtained from the seed. The oil must be refined before it is edible. A pleasant flavour. The whole plant is rich in a milky sap that flows freely from any wounds. This hardens and dries when in contact with the air. The sap contains 'lactucarium', which is used in medicine for its anodyne, antispasmodic, digestive, diuretic, hypnotic, narcotic and sedative properties. Lactucarium has the effects of a feeble opium, but without its tendency to cause digestive upsets, nor is it addictive. It is taken internally in the treatment of insomnia, anxiety, neuroses, hyperactivity in children, dry coughs, whooping cough, rheumatic pain etc. Concentrations of lactucarium are low in young plants and most concentrated when the plant comes into flower. It is collected commercially by cutting the heads of the plants and scraping the juice into china vessels several times a day until the plant is exhausted. This species does not contain as much lactucarium as L. virosa. An infusion of the fresh or dried flowering plant can also be used. The plant should be used with caution, and never without the supervision of a skilled practitioner. Even normal doses can cause drowsiness whilst excess causes restlessness and overdoses can cause death through cardiac paralysis. The fixed oil from the seeds is said to possess antipyretic and hypnotic properties. A homeopathic remedy is made from the plant. It is used in the treatment of chronic catarrh, coughs, swollen liver, flatulence and ailments of the urinary tract.
TECHNICAL: From the Colorado State University Extension website: pappus (extension of the ovary) bright white; leaf margins and/or midrib and veins spiny. Simple leaf type (not divided into similiar parts). Fruit Type: achene (small, dry, indehiscent - does not open upon maturity - fruit with a thin close-fitting wall surrounding a single seed). The height of the plants at maturity is from 1 - 5 feet tall.
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Plant location: This cheery little flower was photographed in the Adams Country Regional Open Space in Colorado State. The date was September 11, 2008. This species is found in every state of the U.S. as well as Canada. It is, in fact, on every temperate regions of all major continents. Habitats are fields, gardens, and disturbed areas. The species is a plains and foothills dweller.Plant -
Bloom season: July to October. In Colorado June through August, commonlyFoliage -
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