Spiny-leaved Sow-thistle Sonchus asper
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- SON-chus AS-per
- Description
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Sonchus asper, or Prickly Sowthistle, is a spring or summer annual herbaceous wildflower, with spiney leaves and yellow flowers and is often considered a weed because of its aggressive spread. Prickly Sowthistle typically grows in full sun, moist to slightly dry conditions, and different kinds of soil, including loam, clay-loam, and shallow gravelly soil. It is often found in lawns, waste places, and roadsides.The size of this plant varies depending on the moisture and fertility of the soil. It can bolt upward and form flowerheads very quickly during the summer. In a garden setting, be careful not to let this plant go to seed. The seeds spread by wind and water and the plant can tend to take over a site.
The plant is not frost tender and flowers from June to August. The seeds ripen from July to September.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Sonchus
- Species:
- asper
- Family:
- Asteraceae
- Life Cycle:
- Annual
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Eurasia and North Africa
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Weed
- Wildflower
- Habit/Form:
- Erect
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Coarse
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil Drainage:
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Black
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Type:
- Achene
- Fruit Description:
- Each floret is replaced by an achene with a tuft of silky white hairs. The achenes are flat, spindle-shaped, hairless, and have several longitudinal ribs. They are distributed by the wind. This plant spreads by reseeding itself.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Petals:
- more than 20 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- The upper stems terminate in clusters of 1 to 5 composite flowers on rather short stalks. Each flower is about 2/3 inch across when fully open, consisting of numerous yellow ray florets. The base of each flower is covered with dull green bracts and is it rather short. The blooming period can occur from late spring to early fall, and usually lasts about a month for a colony of plants.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Oblanceolate
- Pinnatifid
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- > 6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Large basal leaves and smaller, curved upper leaves have soft, very spiny teeth. Margins are spiny and wavy, white mid-vein, large round basal lobes clasping - curled downward, often dark green and glossy. Leaves are up to 10 inches long and 3½ inches across, but more commonly they are about half this size or less. On shorter plants, they are rather crowded together on the stems, even where the composite flowers occur. Depending on the local form of the plant, these leaves may be pinnatifid, or they may lack significant lobes along the margins, in which case they are broadly lanceolate or oblanceolate.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Cross Section:
- Round
- Stem Form:
- Straight
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Upright, smooth, stems branched sparsely above. The stems have rather conspicuous longitudinal veins and are usually hairless, although occasionally the upper stems and flowering stalks have a few hairs.
