Lactuca indica

Lactuca indica, Indian lettuce, is a species of plant in the dandelion tribe within the sunflower family. It is native to western China (Xinjiang, Tibet), the Himalayas, and southwest Asia as far west as Turkey. It is widely introduced elsewhere, even as far as east Africa, and is thought to be an archaeophyte in Japan, brought in with rice cultivation.

Lactuca indica
A typical flower
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Tribe: Cichorieae
Genus: Lactuca
Species:
L. indica
Binomial name
Lactuca indica
L. Mant. Pl. 2: 278. 1771.
Synonyms[1]
  • Brachyramphus sinicus Miq.
  • Chondrilla squarrosa (Thunb.) Poir.
  • Lactuca amurensis Regel & Maxim.
  • Lactuca amurensis Regel
  • Lactuca bialata Griff.
  • Lactuca brevirostris Champ.
  • Lactuca brevirostris Champ. ex Benth.
  • Lactuca cavaleriei H.Lév.
  • Lactuca dracoglossa Makino
  • Lactuca hoatiensis H.Lév. & Vaniot
  • Lactuca kouyangensis H.Lév.
  • Lactuca laciniata (Houtt.) Makino
  • Lactuca mauritiana Poir.
  • Lactuca squarrosa (Thunb.) Miq.
  • Lactuca squarrosa (Thunb.) Maxim.
  • Leontodon acutissimus Noronha
  • Prenanthes laciniata Houtt.
  • Prenanthes squarrosa Thunb.
  • Pterocypsela indica (L.) C.Shih
  • Pterocypsela indivisa (Makino) H.S.Pak
  • Pterocypsela laciniata (Houtt.) C.Shih

Lactuca indica is a biennial herb, growing from a taproot to at least 40 cm tall and often reaching 2 m. Its flowers have white to pale yellow ray florets with yellower centers. The narrowness of the leaf blades and the degree of spikiness of leaf lobes varies greatly by region.

Lower leaves senescing during flowering, a trait typical to this species

It is cultivated (or rather, its growth is encouraged) as fodder for rabbits, pigs, poultry and even fish in Asia.[2][3] Its young leaves can be, and are, consumed as a leaf vegetable in salads like other dandelions.[4] It is used in traditional medicines as an aid to digestion.

References
  1. "Lactuca indica L." The Plant List.
  2. 王, 和平 (February 1990). "优质高产的青绿饲料作物—苦荬菜". 宁夏农林科技.
  3. Transhumant Grazing Systems in Temperate Asia. Food and Agriculture Organization. p. 103. ISBN 9789251049778.
  4. Kays, S. J. (9 May 2011). Cultivated vegetables of the world: A multilingual onomasticon. ISBN 9789086867202.
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