Wild Lettuce, Woodland Lettuce, Florida Blue Lettuce, False Lettuce

Lactuca floridana

lak-TOO-kuh  flor-ih-DAY-na

Synonyms of Lactuca floridana (18) (Updated on 12-2-23 from Plants of the World Online): Cicerbita acuminata (Willd.) Wallr., Cicerbita floridana (L.) Wallr., Cicerbita villosa Beauverd, Lactuca acuminata (Willd.) Spreng., Lactuca floridana f. leucantha Fernald, Lactuca floridana var. villosa (Jacq.) Cronquist, Lactuca villosa Jacq., Mulgedium acuminatum (Willd.) DC., Mulgedium floridanum DC., Mulgedium floridanum var. acuminatum Alph.Wood, Mulgedium lyratum Cass., Mulgedium villosum Small, Prenanthes sonchoides DC., Sonchus acuminatus Willd., Sonchus floridanus L., Wiestia acuminata (Willd.) Sch.Bip., Wiestia floridana Sch.Bip.

Lactuca floridana (L.) Gaertn. is the accepted scientific name for this species of Lactuca. It was named and described as such by Joseph Gaertner in De Fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum in 1791. It was first named and described as Sonchus floridanus by Carl von Linnaeus in the second volume of the first edition of Species Plantarum in 1753.

The genus, Lactuca L., was named and described as such by Carl von Linnaeus in the second volume of the first edition of Species Plantarum in 1753.

As of 12-2-23 when this page was last updated, Plants of the World Online lists 114 species in the Lactuca genus. It is a member of the plant family Asteraceae with 1,702 genera. Those numbers could change as updates are made by POWO. The number of genera in this family fluctuates quite often.

The distribution map above for Lactuca floridana is from Plants of the World Online. Areas in green show where the species is native. The map on the USDA Plants Database is similar.

The map on iNaturalist shows where members have made observations. Anyone can join and it is a great website to confirm and share your observations. The maps on iNaturalist are continually updated as members post new observations.

THERE ARE SEVERAL LINKS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE FOR FURTHER READING AND TO HELP WITH A BETTER POSITIVE ID.

I found several plants of Lactuca floridana growing in a shady area north of the pond. Several Lactuca species are growing here on the farm but this one is a little different… Its flowers are a very light blue, nearly white while the others are a yellowish color.

Plants are topped with panicles of 50-100 flower heads. Flower heads, which I need to get photos of, contain 10-20 ray florets (petals) without disc florets. The corollas of this species can be lavender, purplish blue, or blue of various shades.

The achenes (seeds) are similar to other species in the genus, but this species and Lactuca biennis are the only two with fruit hairs (pappus) in double rings.

Lactuca floridana can grow to a height of at least 8-9 feet tall in favorable conditions. They prefer moist, organic soil in light to part shade but they will grow in sandy soil in various habitats. Their stems are glabrous (hairless) and are hollow between the leaf nodes. Its stems and leaves secrete pure white sap.

The leaves are highly variable on the same plant and from one plant to another. Basal and lower leaves can grow from about 3” to over 2’ in length. The leaves usually have winged petioles and can be narrow-ovate, ovate, or obovate in outline. Leaves can be toothed or deeply pinnately lobed sometimes with small hairs along the margins.

The leaves in the middle and upper part of the stems may have triangular basal lobes that clasp the stems. These leaves can be lanceolate to ovate or obovate in outline, and mostly pinnately lobed. The undersides of the leaves may have hairs running along the midvein.

The above photo shows the underside of a leaf with small hairs along the midvein. You can see the leaves have a lot of teeth along the margins as well.

Even though the above photo is sort of blurry, you can see flower stems emerging from the leaf axils. This is not mentioned in the descriptions on other websites. I need to try to get better photos…

This photo shows a plant with a purplish stem. The stem becomes green toward the top of the plant.

Here is another photo of the flowering stems emerging from the leaf axils…

The Lactuca floridana is a species worth further observation. I was fairly busy in 2020 and I didn’t take any more photos of this small colony. I will be keeping an eye on them in 2021…

<<<<2021>>>>

I found several Lactuca floridana growing along the Katy Trail that runs along the south side of the farm on 6-16-21. I took several photos but none of them were flowering yet.

The leaves of the plants along the trail were somewhat different than those of the plant I found on the farm in 2019… As I mentioned before, the leaves of this species are highly variable…

Nice purplish stems… Several vines were growing here and there. The plant in this photo has a vine growing on its stem, possibly some kind of Morning Glory.

The leaves are deeply palmately lobed…

The above photo shows how the leaves grow in an alternate pattern along the leaves.

The stems are smooth (glabrous) and hollow between the leaf nodes.

The petioles of the leaves have an adaxial groove…

 

The above photo shows the leaves of a younger plant…

Maybe in 2022 I can go back to the trail and get more photos of this species, or even find a few new ones…

I have enjoyed photographing and learning about the many wildflowers growing on the farm and other areas. I have grown over 500 different plants and identified over 250 wildflowers (most have pages listed on the right side of this site). I am not an expert, botanist, or horticulturalist. I just like growing, photographing, and writing about my experience. I rely on several websites for ID and a horticulturalist I contact if I cannot figure them out. Wildflowers can be somewhat variable from location to location, so sometimes it gets a bit confusing. If you see I have made an error, please let me know so I can correct what I have written.

I hope you found this page useful and be sure to check the links below for more information. They were written by experts and provide much more information. If you can, I would appreciate it if you would click on the “Like” below and leave a comment. It helps us bloggers stay motivated. You can also send an email to me at thebelmontrooster@yahoo.com. I would enjoy hearing from you.

FOR FURTHER READING:
PLANTS OF THE WORLD ONLINE (GENUS/SPECIES)
INTERNATIONAL PLANT NAMES INDEX (GENUS/SPECIES)
TROPICOS (GENUS/SPECIES)
FLORA OF NORTH AMERICA (GENUS/SPECIES)
WORLD FLORA ONLINE (GENUS/SPECIES)
WIKIPEDIA (GENUS/SPECIES)
MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN
DAVE’S GARDEN
MISSOURI PLANTS
MSU-MIDWEST WEEDS AND WILDFLOWERS
iNATURALIST
WILDFLOWER SEARCH
USDA PLANTS DATABASE
NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
LADY BIRD JOHNSON WILDFLOWER CENTER
KANSAS WILDFLOWERS AND GRASSES
FLORA FINDER
EAT THE WEEDS
KANSAS NATIVE PLANTS

NOTE: The data (figures, maps, accepted names, etc.) may not match on these websites. It depends on when and how they make updates and when their sources make updates. Some websites have hundreds and even many thousands of species to keep up with. Accepted scientific names change periodically and it can be hard to keep with as well. Some of the links may use a name that is a synonym on other sites. In my opinion, Plants of the World Online by Kew is one of the most reliable and up-to-date plant databases and they make updates regularly. I make updates “at least” once a year and when I write new pages or add new photos but I do get behind. We are all a work in progress. 🙂