Lactuca serriola
Lactuca floridana
prickly lettuce
Florida lettuce, woodland lettuce
on proximal 1/2–3/4 of each stem;
blades of undivided cauline leaves usually ± oblong, sometimes obovate to lanceolate, margins denticulate, usually prickly, midribs usually prickly-setose, rarely smooth.
on proximal 2/3–3/4 of each stem;
blades of undivided cauline leaves oblong, ovate, or elliptic, margins entire or denticulate, midribs sometimes sparsely pilose.
9–10(–12) mm.
(8–)10–12+ mm.
12–20;
corollas yellow, usually deliquescent.
10–15(–25+);
corollas bluish or whitish, seldom deliquescent.
usually reflexed in fruit.
usually reflexed in fruit.
in paniculiform arrays.
in (± pyramidal) paniculiform arrays.
bodies pale grayish to tan, ± flattened, oblanceolate, 2.5–3.5 mm, beaks ± filiform, 2.5–4 mm, faces (3–)5–9-nerved;
pappi white, (3–)4–5 mm.
bodies brown (often mottled), ± compressed-lanceoloid to -fusiform, 4–5 mm, beaks ± stout, 0.1–0.5(–1) mm, faces 5–6-nerved;
pappi white, 4–5 mm.
= 18.
= 34.
Lactuca serriola
Lactuca floridana
The name Lactuca scariola Linnaeus is evidently illegitimate; it is a superfluous name based on the same type as L. serriola. Plants included here in L. serriola with most leaf blades obovate to lanceolate (not lobed) and lacking prickles on midribs have been called L. scariola subsp. or var. integrata or L. serriola forma integrifolia or L. serriola var. integrata.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
The “double” pappi of Lactuca floridana (and L. biennis) are very similar to pappi found in species assigned to Cicerbita Wallroth (ca. 35 spp., Europe, Asia, Africa). Return of the species to Cicerbita as C. floridana (Linnaeus) Wallroth may have merit.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
- Local floras:
BC, 
CA, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos,
Flora NW, 
Go Botany, 
IL Wildflowers, 
KS Wildflowers, 
LA Plants, 
MD Biodiversity, 
MI Flora, 
MN Wildflowers, 
MO Plants, 
PNW Herbaria, 
SW CO Wildflowers, Turner Photog. 
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
- SEINet
- Plants of the World Online
- Encyclopedia of Life
- Wikipedia
- Google Image Search
