Common Sowthistle (Sonchus oleraceus)

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 Sonchus oleraceus - Wikipedia
Sonchus oleraceus - Foraging Texas
Sonchus oleraceus - USDA PLANTS Database
Sonchus oleraceus - Plants for a Future

Duration: Annual Origination: Europe and western AsiaEdibility: leaves, stems (boiled), roots (roasted)Status in Yard: A few individuals

Sonchus oleraceus, like its cousin Sonchus asper, is an edible lettuce substitute. It appears in my backyard here and there in the spring.

 I took a picture of one on March 9, 2014. Note the spots on the leaves and purplish hue to the basal leaves.
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Photo from March 29, 2014.

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I took this photo on April 26, 2014.
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This specimen was growing under a common sunflower plant, and a shepherd's purse was growing under it. It had a full ball of fluffy cypselae (the seed-like fruit with hair-like calyx tissue that helps carry the fruits in the wind) when I took this photo on April 12, 2017.
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