Sonchus oleraceus

Common sowthistle
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Sonchus
Species:
S. oleraceus
Binomial name
Sonchus oleraceus
L. 1753 not Wall. 1831
Synonyms[1]
Synonymy
  • Carduus amplexicaulis Noronha
  • Sonchus angustissimus Hook.f.
  • Sonchus australis Trevir.
  • Sonchus ciliatus Lam.
  • Sonchus fabrae Sennen
  • Sonchus glaber Gilib.
  • Sonchus gracilis Phil.
  • Sonchus gracilis Sennen
  • Sonchus lacerus Willd.
  • Sonchus laevis Vill.
  • Sonchus longifolius Trevir.
  • Sonchus macrotus Fenzl
  • Sonchus pallescens Pančić
  • Sonchus parviflorus Lej. ex Rchb.
  • Sonchus reversus E.Mey. ex DC.
  • Sonchus rivularis Phil.
  • Sonchus roseus Besser ex Spreng.
  • Sonchus royleanus DC.
  • Sonchus runcinatus (Fiori) Zenari
  • Sonchus schimperi A.Braun & Bouché
  • Sonchus schmidianus K.Koch
  • Sonchus spinulifoius Sennen
  • Sonchus subbipinnatifidus (Guss.) Zenari
  • Sonchus sundaicus Blume
  • Sonchus tenerrimus Schur 1866 not L. 1753
  • Sonchus umbellifer Thunb.
  • Sonchus zacinthoides DC.

Sonchus oleraceus is a species of flowering plant in the tribe Cichorieae of the family Asteraceae, native to Europe and Western Asia. It has many common names including common sowthistle,[2] sow thistle,[3] smooth sow thistle, annual sow thistle, hare's colwort, hare's thistle, milky tassel, milk thistle,[4] and soft thistle.[4]

Its specific epithet oleraceus means "vegetable/herbal".[5][6][a] The common name 'sow thistle' refers to its attractiveness to pigs, and the similarity of the leaf to younger thistle plants. The common name 'hare's thistle' refers to its purported beneficial effects on hare and rabbits.[7]

  1. ^ The Plant List, Sonchus oleraceus (L.) L.
  2. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Sonchus oleraceus". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  3. ^ Sonchus oleraceus at Plants For A Future
  4. ^ a b International Environmental Weed Foundation, retrieved 24 December 2015
  5. ^ Parker, Peter (2018). A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners. Little Brown Book Group. p. 328. ISBN 978-1-4087-0615-2. oleraceus, holeraceus = relating to vegetables or kitchen garden
  6. ^ Whitney, William Dwight (1899). The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia. Century Co. p. 2856. L. holeraceus, prop. oleraceus, herb-like, holus, prop. olus (oler-), herbs, vegetables
  7. ^ "A Modern Herbal | Sow-Thistles". Botanical.com. Retrieved 2014-07-12.


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