Lactuca serriola 5355749 226074476 2008-07-16T18:40:10Z Thijs!bot 1392310 robot Adding: [[hu:Keszegsaláta]] {{Taxobox | name = Prickly lettuce | image = Lactucaserriola2web.jpg | image_width = 200px | image_caption = ''Lactuca serriola'' | regnum = [[Plant]]ae | divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]] | classis = [[Magnoliopsida]] | ordo = [[Asterales]] | familia = [[Asteraceae]] | tribus = [[Cichorieae]] | genus = ''[[Lactuca]]'' | species = '''''L. serriola''''' | binomial = ''Lactuca serriola'' | binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]] }} '''Prickly Lettuce ''(Lactuca serriola)''''' is an [[annual plant|annual]] or [[biennial plant]] that is commonly considered a [[weed]] of [[orchard]]s, roadsides and field crops. The closest wild relative of cultivated lettuce (''[[Lactuca sativa]]'' L.), it grows throughout the temperate regions of all major continents. The [[leaf|leaves]] grow along a spiny [[plant stem|stem]] and get progressively smaller as they reach its top. They emit a milky [[sap (plant)|sap]] when cut. Many [[flower]]s are produced and usually appear in the upper part of the plant. == Culinary and Medicinal Usage == The plant can be eaten as a [[salad]], although it has something of a bitter taste. However, its presence in some ancient deposits has been linked more to its [[soporific]] properties which might suggest ritual use. The [[ancient greece|Ancient Greeks]] also believed its pungent juice to be a remedy against [[eye]] [[ulcers]] and [[Pythagoreans]] called the lettuce ''eunuch'' because it caused urination and relaxed sexual desire. It can also cause euphoria, relaxation, and at very high doses visual and auditory distortions from the lactucarium, although not as potent as the opiate effects of [[Lactuca virosa]].{{Fact|date=June 2008}} == History == The Egyptian god [[Min (god)|Min]] is associated with this variety of lettuce. Also, archaeobotanical evidence in Greek archaeological contexts is scanty, although uncarbonised seeds have been retrieved from a 7th century BC deposit in a sanctuary of [[Hera]] on [[Samos Island|Samos]]. It is also described by [[Theophrastus]]. In mythology, [[Aphrodite]] is said to have laid [[Adonis]] in a lettuce bed, leading to the vegetable's association with food for the dead. ==References== * {{Cite book |last=Everitt |first=J.H. |coauthors=Lonard, R.L., Little, C.R. |title=Weeds in South Texas and Northern Mexico |publisher=Texas Tech University Press |location=Lubbock |year=2007}} ISBN 0-89672-614-2 *Fragiska, M. (2005). Wild and Cultivated Vegetables, Herbs and Spices in Greek Antiquity. ''Environmental Archaeology'' '''10''' (1): 73-82 ==External links== *[http://www.ppws.vt.edu/scott/weed_id/lacse.htm Prickly Lettuce on Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide] [[Category:Lactuca]] [[de:Stachel-Lattich]] [[fr:Laitue scariole]] [[hu:Keszegsaláta]] [[nl:Kompassla]] [[sv:Taggsallat]]