Sow thistles facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sow thistles
Sonchus oleraceus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Asterales
Family:	Asteraceae
Subfamily:	Cichorioideae
Tribe:	Cichorieae
Subtribe:	Hyoseridinae
Genus:	Sonchus L.
Type species
Sonchus oleraceus L.
Synonyms
Chrysoprenanthes (Sch.Bip.) Bramwell Kirkianella Allan Sonchidium Pomel Taeckholmia Boulos Atalanthus D.Don Wildpretia U.Reifenb. & A.Reifenb. Aetheorhiza Cass. Embergeria Boulos Phoenicoseris (Skottsb.) Skottsb. Babcockia Boulos Trachodes D.Don Actites Lander Sonchoseris Fourr. Lactucosonchus (Sch.Bip.) Svent. Acanthosonchus (Sch.Bip.) Kirp. Sventenia Font Quer

Sonchus, often called sow thistles, are a type of flowering plant. They belong to the same plant family as sunflowers and dandelions, called Asteraceae. You might also hear them called "hare thistles" or "hare lettuces." Sow thistles can be annuals (live one year), biennials (live two years), or perennials (live many years). Some even grow into small woody plants, especially in the Canary Islands.

What are Sow Thistles?

Sonchus hierrensis in the Canary Island of La Gomera.

The name Sonchus comes from an Ancient Greek word for these kinds of plants. Sow thistles have soft leaves that are a bit jagged. These leaves wrap around the plant's stem and often start as a cluster near the ground. If you cut the stem, a milky white liquid, called latex, comes out.

Their flowers are yellow and look like small dandelions. Each flower head is about half an inch to one inch wide. The fruits are small, dry, and contain a single seed. Sow thistles are very common plants found along roadsides. While they originally came from Eurasia and tropical Africa, they now grow almost everywhere in temperate parts of the world.

Plant Size and Milky Sap

Mature sow thistle stems can grow from about 30 centimeters (1 foot) to 2 meters (6 feet) tall. Their color can be green or even purple in older plants. When any part of the plant is cut or damaged, it oozes a milky sap. This is why they are called "sow thistles." People used to feed them to sows (female pigs) that were nursing their babies. They believed it would help the sows produce more milk. In some places, sow thistles are also called "milk thistles," but true milk thistles are a different kind of plant.

Are Sow Thistles Weeds?

In many places, sow thistles are seen as noxious weeds. This is because they grow very quickly in many different conditions. Their seeds are light and can be carried by the wind, helping them spread fast.

Impact on Crops

One type, Sonchus arvensis (the perennial sow thistle), can cause problems for farmers. It can grow thickly and take up space meant for commercial crops. It also uses a lot of nitrogen from the soil. If land is left empty to rest (called fallow), this plant can use up the soil's water. It can also regrow from its spreading roots, making it hard to get rid of.

Easy to Remove

Even though they can be a problem, sow thistles are usually easy to remove by hand. Their soft stems don't offer much resistance if you cut or mow them. Most livestock animals, like cows or sheep, actually prefer to eat sow thistles over grass. These plants are also safe and nutritious for humans to eat. In fact, the "oleraceus" part of the common sow thistle's Latin name means "edible."

How Sow Thistles are Used

Sow thistles are often host plants for tiny insects called aphids. Gardeners might see this as a good or bad thing. Aphids can spread from sow thistles to other plants, but sow thistles can also attract helpful insects like hoverflies that eat aphids. Because of this, sow thistles can be used as "sacrificial plants." This means they attract pests away from more valuable plants.

Food for Insects and Animals

Different insect larvae (young insects) also eat Sonchus species. These include the larvae of certain moths like Celypha rufana and the broad-barred white moth. The fly Tephritis formosa is known to attack the flower heads of sow thistles.

Sonchus tenerrimus and Sonchus oleraceus grow in many crops in Italy. They are considered tasty edible plants and are cooked with spaghetti and meatballs.

Sow thistles have long been used as food for animals, especially rabbits. This is why they are also called "hare thistle" or "hare lettuce." They are also edible for humans as a leaf vegetable. Older leaves and stalks can be bitter, but young leaves taste similar to lettuce. In New Zealand, the native Māori often eat them as a vegetable, calling them puha or rareke (raraki). When cooked, their flavor is a bit like chard.

Types of Sow Thistles

Here are some of the many different types of Sonchus plants:

See also

In Spanish: Sonchus para niños