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Lactuca pulchella (Pursh) DC.  

Explore 3 occurrences

Family: Asteraceae
blue lettuce
[Lactuca oblongifolia Nutt., moreLactuca tatarica subsp. pulchella (Pursh) Stebbins, Lactuca tatarica var. heterophylla (Nutt.) Boivin, Lactuca tatarica var. pulchella (Pursh) Breitung, Mulgedium pulchellum (Pursh) G. Don]
Lactuca pulchella image
Max Licher
  • FNA
  • Gleason & Cronquist
  • Field Guide
  • Resources
John L. Strother in Flora of North America (vol. 19, 20 and 21)
Leaf blades 3-12(-18) cm × 5-25(-35+) mm. Involucres 12-15+ mm. Cypselae: bodies 4-5+ mm, beaks 0-1 mm; pappi 7-9(-12+) mm. 2n = 18. Flowering Jun-Sep. Calcareous sites, clearings in forests or shrublands, meadows, roadsides, stream banks, other wet sites; 800-3200 m; Alta., B.C., Man., N.W.T., Ont., Que., Sask.; Alaska, Ariz., Calif., Colo., Idaho, Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., La., Maine, Mich., Minn., Mo., Mont., Nebr., Nev., N.Mex., N.Y., N.Dak., Ohio, Okla., Oreg., Pa., S.Dak., Tex., Utah, Wash., Wis., Wyo. The type of Mulgedium pulchellum may be conspecific with that of M. tataricum (Linnaeus) de Candolle, a Eurasian species. Or, if 'perennial' plus 'Fl. blue' constitutes sufficient description for valid publication of the name Lactuca oblongifolia Nuttall (1813), then a new combination in Mulgedium based on that name may be appropriate for what is here called M. pulchellum. Presence of Mulgedium pulchellum in Texas is based on a single, early collection.

Vascular plants of NE US and adjacent Canada
Perennial 2-10 dm from deep-seated creeping roots, glabrous or glabrate; lvs elongate, 5-18 cm נ6-35 mm, entire, or the lower ones ±lobed, rarely sharply denticulate, often glaucous beneath; heads several or numerous, very showy, with 18-50 blue fls; invol 15-20 mm in fr; achenes 4-7 mm overall, the slender body moderately compressed, prominently several- nerved on each face, the beak stout, often whitish, up to as long as the body; 2n=34. Mostly in meadows, thickets, prairies, and other moist low places; Alas. to Calif., e. to Minn. and Mo., and occasionally intr. eastward. June-Sept. (L. tatarica ssp. p.; L. oblongifolia)

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

©The New York Botanical Garden. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
FNA 2006, Kearney and Peebles 1969, McDougall 1973
Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Forb/Herb General: Herbaceous biennials to perennials, to 100 cm tall, glabrous, stems leafy, with milky sap, plants with spreading rhizomes. Leaves: Alternate, linear-lanceolate to oblong, 5-15 cm long, margins entire to dentate or pinnatifid, not spinulose, faces glabrous. Flowers: Heads small to medium, radiate, rays blue to purple, disk flowers blue, with extruded blue stamens and anthers, involucres 14-20 mm high, cylindrical, phyllaries overlapping in 3-4 series. Fruits: Achenes strongly flattened, to 4 mm long, with several ribs on each face, contracted into a beak with a disk at the apex, the beak about half as long as the body. Pappus of white, copious, early deciduous capillary bristles. Ecology: Found from 6,000-7,500 ft (1829-2286 m); flowering summer. Distribution: Saskatchewan to British Columbia, south to Missouri, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Notes: Look to the blue flowers, the phyllaries in 3-4 series, and the ribed achenes with sort beaks to help identify this species. Look for this species under L. pulchella in older texts. Ethnobotany: An infusion of the plant was used to treat diarrhea, a polutice of the roots was applied to piles, and the roots were used as chewing gum. Etymology: Lactuca is Latin for milky sap, while tatarica is a reference to Tatars, the Turkic peoples living in the old USSR, while pulchella is derived from the Latin for beautiful. Synonyms: None Editor: LCrumbacher 2011
Lactuca pulchella
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Lactuca pulchella image
Max Licher
Lactuca pulchella image
Max Licher
Lactuca pulchella image
Max Licher
Lactuca pulchella image
Max Licher
Lactuca pulchella image
Anthony Mendoza
Lactuca pulchella image
Anthony Mendoza
Lactuca pulchella image
Anthony Mendoza
Lactuca pulchella image
Lactuca pulchella image
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