Common nipplewort facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Common nipplewort |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Lapsana
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| Species: |
communis
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| Synonyms | |
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Synonymy
Lapsana cancellata Borbás
Lapsana cappadocica Bornm. Lapsana crispa Willd. Lapsana glandulosa (Freyn) Klokov Lapsana olympica Candargy Lapsana pubescens Hornem. Lapsana sonchifolia Gilib. Lapsana sylvatica Wallr. Lapsana adenophora Boiss., syn. of subsp. adenophora Lapsana alpina Boiss. & Balansa, syn. of subsp. alpina Lapsana glandulifera Cass., syn. of subsp. grandiflora Lapsana grandiflora M.Bieb., syn. of subsp. grandiflora Lapsana lyrata Willd., syn. of subsp. grandiflora Lapsana aipetriensis Vassilcz., syn. of subsp. intermedia Lapsana intermedia M.Bieb., syn. of subsp. intermedia Lapsana macrocarpa Coss., syn. of subsp. macrocarpa Lapsana cassia Boiss., syn. of subsp. pisidica Lapsana peduncularis Boiss., syn. of subsp. pisidica Lapsana pisidica Boiss. & Heldr., syn. of subsp. pisidica Lapsana ramosissima Boiss., syn. of subsp. pisidica |
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Lapsana communis, the common nipplewort, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to Europe and southwestern Asia. and widely naturalized in other regions including North America.
Description
Lapsana communis is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant growing to 1–1.2 m (3 ft 3 in – 3 ft 11 in) tall, with erect, hairy branching stems and clear (not milky) sap. The leaves are alternate and spirally arranged; the larger leaves at the base of the flowering stem are often pinnate, with a large oval terminal leaflet and one to four small side leaflets, while smaller leaves higher on the stem are simple oval; all leaves have toothed margins. The flowers are yellow, produced in a capitulum 1–2 cm (0.39–0.79 in) diameter, the capitula being numerous in loose clusters at the top of the stem. The capitulum is surrounded by a whorl of involucral bracts, the outer ones very small and the inner ones erect, narrow and stiff and all the same length. The eight to fifteen florets are all ligulate and pale yellow, shaped like a tongue with a five-toothed tip. Each has five stamens and a gynoecium composed of two fused carpels. The fruit is a cypsela surrounded by the hardened remains of the involucral bracts. The numerous small seeds are retained in the cypsela until the plant is shaken by the wind or a passing animal. Pappus is absent.
- Subspecies
- Lapsana communis subsp. adenophora (Boiss.) Rech.f. – Southeast Europe
- Lapsana communis subsp. alpina (Boiss. & Balansa) P.D.Sell. – Crimea
- Lapsana communis subsp. communis – most of Europe, except the southeast
- Lapsana communis subsp. grandiflora (M. Bieb.) P.D.Sell. – Southwest Asia
- Lapsana communis subsp. intermedia (M. Bieb.) Hayek. – Southwest Asia, southeast Europe
- Lapsana communis subsp. pisidica (Boiss. & Heldr.) Rech.f. – Greece
Distribution and habitat
Away from its native area, Lapsana communis is common throughout the British Isles, naturalised, and sometimes considered an invasive species, in many areas around the world, including Australia, Chile, New Zealand, Greenland, and most of Canada and the United States.
Lapsana communis is found growing in arable fields, woods, hedges, roadsides, wasteland, hedgerows, woodland margins and clear-felled areas in forests.
Cultivation and uses
The young leaves are edible, and can be used in salads or cooked like spinach. Because of its tiny hairs, some might prefer it mixed with other vegetables. The scientific name comes from lapsane, an edible herb described by Marcus Terentius Varro of ancient Rome.
See also
In Spanish: Lapsana communis para niños
