Sonchus asper
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Sonchus asper2.jpg
|genus = Sonchus
|species = asper
|authority = (L.) Hill 1769
|synonyms_ref = [http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/gcc-130230 The Plant List, Sonchus asper (L.) Hill ]
|synonyms = {{collapsible list|bullets = true
|title=Synonymy
|Sonchus oleraceus var. asper L. 1753
|Sonchus aemulus Merino
|Sonchus australis Hort. ex Colla
|Sonchus borderi Gand.
|Sonchus carolinianus Walter
|Sonchus crocifolius Hort. ex Sch.Bip.
|Sonchus cuspidatus Blume
|Sonchus decipiens (De Not.) Zenari
|Sonchus eryngiifolius Sosn.
|Sonchus eryngioides DC.
|Sonchus fallax Wallr.
|Sonchus ferox Wall.
|Sonchus glaber Thunb.
|Sonchus infestus Poepp. ex DC.
|Sonchus oleraceus Wall. 1831 not L. 1753
|Sonchus spinosus Lam.
|Sonchus spinulosus Bigel.
|Sonchus sulphureus Boiss.
|Sonchus tibesticus Quézel
|Sonchus umbellatus E.Mey. ex DC.
|Sonchus viridis Zenari
|Sonchus eryngiifolius Sosn. ex Grossh.
|Sonchus giganteus Shuttlew. ex Rouy
|Sonchus glaucescens Jord.
|Sonchus graecus Reut. ex E.Weiss
|Sonchus kralikii Rouy
|Sonchus nymanii Tineo & Guss.
}}}}
Sonchus asper, the prickly sow-thistle,{{BSBI 2007 |access-date=2014-10-17 }} rough milk thistle,{{citation |url=https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=34933 |title=USDA GRIN Taxonomy}} spiny sowthistle,{{PLANTS|id=SOAS|taxon=Sonchus asper|access-date=19 November 2015}} sharp-fringed sow thistle, or spiny-leaved sow thistle, is a widespread flowering plant in the tribe Cichorieae within the family Asteraceae.
Description
Sonchus asper is an annual or biennial herb sometimes reaching a height of {{convert|200|cm|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.[http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=200024556 Flora of North America, Sonchus asper (Linnaeus) Hill, 1769. Spiny-leaf sow-thistle, laiteron rude ][http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200024556 Flora of China, Sonchus asper (Linnaeus) Hill, 1769. 花叶滇苦菜 hua ye dian ku cai ]
Distribution
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.[http://luirig.altervista.org/flora/taxa/index1.php?scientific-name=sonchus+asper Altervista Flora Italiana, Sonchus asper (L.) Hill] includes photos and European distribution mapDe la Barra, N. 1997. Reconstrucción y Evolución del Paisaje Vegetal Autóctono de la Zona Urbana y Peri-urbana de la Ciudad de Cochabamba i–v, 1–174. Tesis, Universidad Mayor San Simón, CochabambaMarticorena, C. & M. Quezada. 1985. Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Chile. Gayana, Botany 42: 1–157Humbert, H. 1923. Les Composées de Madagascar. Mémoires de la Société Linnéenne de Normandie 25: 1–335.[http://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:apni.taxon:623826# Atlas of Living Australia]
It is found in cultivated soil, pastures, roadsides, edges of yards, vacant lots, construction sites, waste areas and in grasslands.[https://www.iewf.org/weedid/Sonchus_oleraceus.htm Sonchus oleraceus L.] by iewf.org
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.ppws.vt.edu/scott/weed_id/sonas.htm Spiny Sowthistle in Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20060506033124/http://www.weedalert.com/weed_pages/wa_spiny_sowthistle.htm WeedAlert.com's article on the Spiny Sowthistle]
- [http://www.tropicos.org/ImageFullView.aspx?imageid=60514 photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Madagascar in 1932]
- {{Commons category-inline}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q1065570}}
Category:Flora of Western Asia