What it is
Sow Thistle (Sonchus oleraceus) is in the Asteraceae (Daisy) family. A dandelion relative whose young leaves are a mild edible green. The milky sap and soft prickles tell it apart.
How to grow it
It wants full sun, water it any, and give it any soil. Target a soil pH around Adaptable. Expect roughly Spring. Annual weed.
How it's used
Sow Thistle is used: young leaves (raw/cooked).
🔎 How to identify it
- Lobed leaves clasping the stem
- Milky sap
- Small yellow dandelion-like flowers
Edibility
PartsYoung leaves
UsesYoung leaves (raw/cooked)
CautionHarvest young; gets bitter and prickly with age.
🌤 Before you plant: check the live 7-day garden weather to time it right for frost and heat.
Part of the free Texas Roots plant database, compiled by Jordan Polasek from his greenhouse in El Campo, Texas. Free to read and share. If it helped, the best thanks is to grow something.