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Photographer: Robert W. Freckmann
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Family Asteraceae
Sonchus arvensis L.
field sow-thistle, perennial sow-thistle
Sonchus: the Greek name for sowthistle
arvensis: of planted fields
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| Status: | Introduced - naturalized |
| Plant: | erect, perennial, 16"-60" tall forb with milky juice; stems hairless below the inflorescence; deep, creeping roots forming large patches |
| Flower: | head 1 1/4"-2" wide with yellow ray flowers; inflorescence of several heads in open, branched clusters; blooms July-Oct. |
| Fruit: | wrinkled, dry seed with 5 obvious ribs on each side |
| Leaf: | alternate, edges prickly, lower leaves mostly pinnately-divided, upper leaves upper smaller, less divided and with heart-shaped bases clasping part way around the stem |
| Habitat: | disturbed sites |
| (Glossary) |
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