Sonchus oleraceus seed
LATIN NAME: SONCHUS OLERACEUS
COMMON NAME: Smooth Sow-thistle
In the waste ground and the cultivated fields of the world, the smooth sow-thistle grows as a soft, upright, annual herb with the lobed, prickly-edged, grey-green leaves and the loose clusters of small, yellow, dandelion-like flower heads that open in the summer, the round, fluffy seed heads scattering the tufted seeds on the wind. In time it steadily becomes a rounded crown, reaching 5-10 metres. Site it in full sun, in deep, fertile ground.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The smooth sow-thistle shows up in the studies of the daisy tribe of the fields, its dandelion-like heads and its tufted seeds keeping it in view in the work on the edible weeds of the old world and the wind-dispersed plants of the waste ground. The research looks at the way the lobed leaves hold the plant, the fluffy heads scatter the tufted seeds, and the seed biology of the light, wind-borne seeds.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
In the wild garden and the kitchen patch, the smooth sow-thistle grows the tender leaves that have been gathered as a spring pot herb across the old world since the ancient times, the young leaves milder than the common thistles. The easy annual self-seeds where it is left, and the plant makes the fine wild salad, the bee plant and the plant of the sunny, open garden. It is a plant for the open, sunny, deep and moist place.
To grow the Smooth Sow-thistle from seed, sow the tufted seeds on the surface of moist, leafy soil.
Sow the tufted seeds on the surface of moist, leafy soil, and keep the young sow-thistles in the open, sunny spot. The fluffy heads scatter with the summer.
LATIN NAME: Sonchus oleraceus
COMMON NAME: Common Sowthistle, Sow Thistle, Milk Thistle
The common sowthistle is a bright and generous plant of the fields and the waysides, and its cheerful, yellow, dandelion-like flower heads and its soft, toothed, milky leaves have made it one of the most familiar and most useful of the wild plants. It puts on growth and becomes an upright, leafy clump, staying under a metre. It is a species of flowering plant in the tribe of the daisy family, native to the Europe and the Western Asia, while it has many common names including the common sowthistle and the sow thistle, and it has spread around the world, and it is one of the most familiar and most useful of the wild plants.
The common sowthistle belongs to the daisy family, Asteraceae, and it is a species of flowering plant, native to the Europe and the Western Asia. It has many common names including the common sowthistle and the sow thistle, while it has spread around the world, and it is prized for its cheerful, yellow bloom and its soft, milky leaves.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The common sowthistle has a genuine and growing place in both food and botanical research. It has been studied in the food science and the nutrition, since the soft, young leaves have been gathered and eaten as a green, and researchers have examined the leaves, their composition and their value, while the sowthistle has a long history of use as a wild green, gathered in the spring, and its value as a green vegetable has drawn attention in the international food and foraging press as a generous wild plant of the fields. The plant has also been studied in the botany and the chemistry, since it is a member of the daisy family, and researchers have examined its classification, its relationships and its many compounds, while the milky sap of the plant has been of continuing interest, and the study of the sowthistles and their relatives has been examined, and the plant is best appreciated as a subject of study and of the traditional use rather than a casual home remedy. The species has also been studied in the ecology, since it is a plant that has spread around the world, and researchers have examined its growth, its role in the field and the disturbed-ground community and its value to the pollinators, while the bright, generous bloom of the sowthistle, feeding the bees and the insects, has been of continuing interest. For a plant of such familiarity, the common sowthistle has a rich and growing record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, the common sowthistle is a generous plant of the fields. Its bright, yellow flower heads feed the bees and the pollinators, and its soft, toothed leaves give a low cover, while its fluffy seed heads feed the small birds, and it is a familiar presence in the fields and the waysides of the world.
Its economic value is real. The soft, young leaves have a long history of use as a wild green, gathered in the spring, and their value has drawn attention in the international food and foraging press as a generous wild plant of the fields, while the sowthistle is also prized for its bright, generous bloom for the pollinators. For a grower, the common sowthistle is an easy and generous plant, and for a gardener it brings cheerful, yellow bloom and a plant of the many uses. The seeds are quick and easy — sow them on the surface of moist, free-draining soil in a sunny spot, press them in lightly, keep them gently watered, and theyll be sprouting within a week or two, growing on into a bright, yellow-flowered plant.
Sonchus oleraceus Smooth Sow-thistle Asteraceae: biennial growing to 1 m (3ft 3in). The yellow flowers are 20-30mm across, the flower heads are grouped together in umbel-like clusters from May-October. The feathered pappus hairs forming a ‘clock’. The leaves are matt, pinnate with triangular lobes, spiny margins and clasping at the base. Brocken stems exude a milky sap. Found growing on disturbed and cultivated ground. Native to Europe, including Britain, south and east from Scandinavia to North Africa, North and West Asia. USES: The young leaves can be eaten raw or cooked, this species has the nicest tasting leaves of the genus, and they usually have a mild agreeable flavour especially in the spring. They can be added to salads, cooked like spinach or used in soups. The leaves contain about 30 – 40mg of vitamin C per 100g, 1.2% protein, 0.3% fat, 2.4% carbohydrate, 1.2% ash. It might be best, though it is not essential, to remove the marginal prickles. Stems can be cooked like asparagus or rhubarb. They are best if the outer skin is removed first. Young root can be cooked, but they are woody and not very acceptable. The milky sap has been used as a chewing gum by the Maoris of New Zealand. The plant has emmenagogue and hepatic properties. An infusion has been used to bring on a tardy menstruation and to treat diarrhoea. The latex in the sap is used in the treatment of warts. It is also said to have anticancer activity. The stem juice is a powerful hydrogogue and cathartic, it should be used with great caution since it can cause colic and tenesmus. The gum has been used as a cure for the opium habit. The leaves are applied as a poultice to inflammatory swellings. An infusion of the leaves and roots is febrifuge and tonic. GROWING INFORMATION: Surface sow seeds in spring in situ. This species is seen as a weed and should not need much encouragement to germinate and grow. Very easy.