Common name
English: Indian lettuce
Mandarin: 翅果菊 (chi guo ju)
Classification
Kingdom: Plantae (2625)
Phylum: Tracheophyta (2528)
Class: Magnoliopsida (2137)
Order: Asterales (235)
Family: Asteraceae (219)(family description)
Genus: Lactuca (3)
Epithet: indica L. (12)
Synonyms: Ammoseris patens Wall., Brachyramphus heyneanus Wight, Brachyramphus sinicus Miq., Brachyramphus sonchifolius Thw., Brachyramphus taraxacoides DC., Brachyrhamphus sinicus Miq., Chondrilla indica (L.) Steud., Chondrilla squarrosa (Thunb.) Poir., Lactuca amurensis Regel & Maxim., Lactuca brevirostris Champ. ex Benth., Lactuca cavaleriei H.Lév., Lactuca dracoglossa Makino, Lactuca kouyangensis H.Lév., Lactuca laciniata (Houttuyn) Makino, Lactuca mauritiana Poir., Lactuca squarrosa (Thunb.) Maxim., Leontodon acutissimus Noronha, Microrhynchus patens DC., Prenanthes indica (L.) C.Shih, Prenanthes laciniata Houtt., Prenanthes patens Wall., Prenanthes squarrosa Thunb., Prenanthes taraxacoides Wall., Pterocypsela indica (L.) C.Shih, Pterocypsela indivisa (Makino) H.S.Pak, Pterocypsela laciniata (Houtt.) C.Shih, Sonchus calyculatus Roxb.
heyneanus => in honor of Dr. Benjamin Heyne (1770–1819), German botanist, missionary and collector in SW India
indica => from or referring in some way to India
indivisa => not divided
laciniata => shredded or torn
mauritiana => refers to ancient Mauritania
patens => spreading, opening out
squarrosa => being rough or scurfy
taraxacoides => resembling Taraxacum, the Dandelion
Characteristics
Climate: tropical
Habitat: mesophytic
Habit: herb
Flower colour: yellow, white
External links
Check for Lactuca indica at
World Flora Online, GBIF or IPNI- [584] Lactuca indica - Plants For A Future database