Comments on: Wild Lettuce Anyone?

By: Ayla Heefner

Ayla Heefner — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 19:56:57 +0000

This site has been so helpful at Wild Lettuce ID. I have been searching for good pictures for days. The following site lists Letuca Serriola as poisoness to cattle. IS this a concern???
http://sunnisan.com/flwrs/wild079.html
I was so dissapointed to have stumbled on the benefits of this plant after just a few days prior pulling some from my garden. What a waste. A dear friend is suffering from insomnia.
Thanks for the info and a reply to this question.
Green blessings all

By: Sue

Sue — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:11:35 +0000

I think your correct I can’t seem to find any difference between the two. Lactuca virosa seems stocker and more purple, but all three varities have the same medical properities.
Thanks Sweetie

By: tammy

tammy — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:47:44 +0000

Hi Sue — I think those two species may be virtually identical, or very close to it. From what I have read so far, most varieties of lactuca have very similar properties. (You haven’t received WK of late cause I haven’t been writing, lol. I will be writing again very soon, tho. I think I’m ready to jump back in after all these life changes!) Hugs to you, dear friend!

By: Sue

Sue — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 22:16:43 +0000

Tammy do you know if there is a difference between
Lactuca serriola L and Lactuca scariola.
To me I see no difference!!! Confused!
Also I have not received WitchenKitchen in many months.
Is there a way I can get it to come to me again….Thanks

By: tammy

tammy — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 12:24:19 +0000

that’s wonderful Rick! I agree, sleep is so important. We don’t realize that sometimes until we have to do without it for a while. I’m so glad you enjoy the posts. Thanks for your kind words

By: Rick Herzog

Rick Herzog — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 01:00:36 +0000

Thanks to your wonderful blog on wild lettuce, I am relaxing very nicely with a cup of wild lettuce/hops tea right now. I have intermittent insomnia and have not found an herb quite as good as this one you suggested. My first time trying it, not long ago, I slept 2 hours later than I have in years, and I really needed the zzzzs at the time. I love your site and how clearly you explain things, and have photos that really help show the process you are describing. As you may realize too, quality sleep is priceless sometimes, and I am just wanting to let you know, how appreciative I am for your post, and your sharing spirit.

By: tammy

tammy — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:55:49 +0000

thanks for the info, Brian. The internet is just full of wonderful resources for we plant enthusiasts!

By: Brian

Brian — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 03:41:42 +0000

Yo!

Tammy,

it appears that you are experienced with a lot of plants–far more so than I am.

I see that you refer people to the USDA site; and that’s cool.

I wonder if you’ve seen the “plants for a future” site? I use it a whole lot; I find it’s only drawbacks to be the lack of pictures to aid in plant ID, and its focus on the UK. Still, the information there I’ve found to be a constant source of astonishment! BUT: I’m new to all this. I mean I’ve found about 25 species of edible/medicinal plants in my yard—weeds; which I’d have otherwise cursed trampled, and cut down or pulled up to replace with useless grass. Ah, my poor little friends; I promise them I’d have not been so cruel if I’d only known that they had value!

Anyway, I think the website is PFAF.org. cut and paste “plants for a future” into Google and I’m sure you’ll find it–forgive me for assuming that you don’t already know about it, but if you don’t, it’s a resource!

Brian

By: BK

BK — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 03:51:27 +0000

Thanks Tammy, that’s very informative. I found some more plants which definitely seem to be lactucas. Now — reading what you posted — I suspect them of being hairy lettuce since the prickles were soft and covered the entire leaf. Also, the bottom of the stem was purplish-red (although your photo here shows a purplish-red stem at the base too). My main reservation on the ID is that hairy lettuce is apparently endangered around here according to the USDA site. So maybe it was some other variety.

Well, this seems like a fairy safe “family” to try at any rate. Thanks again for the great info!

By: tammy

tammy — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 23:00:05 +0000

There are several different species of wild lettuce. Some of them do not have the prickles on the midrib – Lactuca canadensis, for example. I think I have a couple different species here, some with prickles, some without. All the leaves are similar, though. The particular species of wild lettuce that I understand to be medicinal and can be used interchangeably are L. scariola, L. canadensis, and L. virosa, but there may be others as well. One species of Lactuca is L. hirsuta (hairy lettuce) and has a similar leaf shape. I do not know it’s medicinal properties, if any. Sounds like a fun topic for more research! You can search the USDA plants database for Lactuca to see a lot of different species: http://plants.usda.gov/

The wild lettuces in my yard that do have prickles are not sharp like those on sow thistle, and they don’t have the leaf tip thorn. They are soft and prickly, more than hairs but not as sharp as sow thistle. You can run your finger along them without fear of getting stabbed and it would probably not catch on your clothes if you brushed up against it. Sow thistle have all around harder, spikier leaves. You can wait for flowers to get a more positive id also. The sow thistle and wild lettuce are very similar when describing using words, but easy (for me) to tell apart after having seen them both in person. There are probably other differentiating characteristics also, but I don’t know what they all are. As far as I know, there are no poisonous look-a-likes for them, though. Young sow thistle is edible also