Sonchus asper (L.) Hill, 1769

Common names

🇬🇧 Prickly Sow-thistle
🇫🇷 Laiteron épineux

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Superasterids
Clade: Asterids
Clade: Campanulids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Subfamily: Cichorioideae
Tribe: Cichorieae
Subtribe: Hyoseridinae
Genus: Sonchus
Species: Sonchus asper

Presence

Present.

Conservation status

Red List (Metropolitan France): LC Least Concern

Notes

Possible confusion with S. oleraceus L., 1753, whose cauline leaves have margins with little to no thorns, while those of S. asper have thorny margins.

The following infraspecific taxa are accepted:

S. asper subsp. asper (L.) Hill, 1769, P;
S. asper subsp. glaucescens (Jord.) Ball, 1878, P.

Hybridizes with S. oleraceus L., 1753 to produce S. × clujensis Nyár., 1965, P (het. syn. S. × rotundilobus Popov ex Kovalevsk., 1962).

Photographs

img/sonchus-asper.webp — *Sonchus asper*

img/sonchus-asper-2.webp — *Sonchus asper*

img/sonchus-asper-6.webp — *Sonchus asper*

img/sonchus-asper-3.webp — *Sonchus asper*

img/sonchus-asper-4.webp — *Sonchus asper* - Leaves

img/sonchus-asper-5.webp — *Sonchus asper* - Cauline leaf

Sources

Tison, J.M., & de Foucault, B. (2014). Flora Gallica : Flore de France (p. 476). Biotope.