Lettuce wirelettuce facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Lettuce wirelettuce |
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Stephanomeria lactucina is a type of flowering plant. It is often called lettuce wirelettuce or woodland wirelettuce. This plant belongs to the aster family, which includes many well-known flowers like daisies and sunflowers.
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About the Lettuce Wirelettuce
This plant is found in Oregon and California, USA. It grows in mountains near the coast and also in inland mountain ranges, like the Sierra Nevada. You can spot it in different places, including forests with cone-bearing trees.
What It Looks Like
The lettuce wirelettuce is a perennial herb. This means it lives for more than two years and grows new shoots from its roots each year. It has a thin, straight stem that can grow to be about 30 to 60 centimeters tall (about 1 to 2 feet). Its leaves are long and narrow, up to 8 centimeters (about 3 inches) long. They have widely spaced teeth along their edges, like a saw blade.
Flowers and Seeds
The plant produces single flower heads. These heads grow on straight stalks called peduncles. Each flower head can have up to 10 ray florets. These are like the "petals" of a daisy. Each floret has a long tube and a pink, fringed part that is about one centimeter long.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
After the flowers bloom, the plant produces fruit. The fruit is a type of dry seed called an achene. Each achene has a fluffy top made of long, feathery bristles. These bristles help the seeds float away on the wind, spreading the plant to new places.
