Lactuca canadensis L.

Tall Lettuce; Wild Lettuce

Herb

Biennial

Vascular

Tall Lettuce is a native biennial in the Aster family (Asteraceae). It can be found throughout Alabama. Tall Lettuce occurs on roadsides, in fields and pastures, along streams, and in disturbed sites in forests. It often tends to be somewhat weedy. Tall Lettuce is a biennial from a tap root. During the first year of growth a basal rosette of leaves is formed. In the second year of growth the stems elongates and flowering occurs. Stems are 3-8 feet in height, unbranched below the inflorescence, round in cross section, glabrous, and glabrous. Leaves are alternate, oblong, obovate, lanceolate, or pinnately dissected in outline, with toothed margins. The base of the leaf clasps the stem. The midribs are sparsely pubescent with widely scattered long hairs. Both stems and leaves exude a milky white latex sap when damaged. Flowers are produced in heads. Heads are arranged in corymbiform or paniculate arrays. Flower heads contain 15-20 ray flowers and no disc flowers. The ray flowers are yellow or rarely blueish in color. Flower heads open at night and close before mid-day on hot days. They may remain open all day on cloudy days. The fruit is a beaked achene. The achene body is flattened and dark brown in color. The achene body may be spotted with black. The beak of the achene is filiform and has a crown of white pappus.--A. Diamond

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Native FACU- (NWPL)

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