Musings

Sunday, June 21, 2015

Smooth Sow-thistle



Apologies for missing yesterday: another case of having all day to do it and then rushing to go out and getting back after midnight. However I have two nicely linked plants.
The first is this one, Sonchus oleraceus, or Smooth Sow-thistle. It's a common annual 'weed' with flower heads in a loose umbel resembling a cross between a dandelion and a thistle. The fruits are dispersed by the wind like thistledown. 
Although it looks prickly, it isn't, and the five-angled stems contain latex sap.

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