WILD LETTUCE
(Lactuca serriola)
prickly lettuce, lettuce opium

Description: An annual or biennial, scruffy weed, 2-4 ft., with a milky sap. Leaves, are alternate, pointed, deeply divided, clasp the stem and twist sideways to become perpendicular with the ground. The central vein of leaves is thick, riblike, prickly on one side and lighter green than the plant. A single stem starts with small, yellow dandelion-like flowers and seeds, then divides into many small, thin floral stems. Found throughout the world, most abundant from 4,000 to 6,000 ft. along roadsides and gravelly, waste places.

Medicinal: Analgesic, antispasmodic, narcotic, sedative. The milky juice, resembles a feeble opium without the tendency to upset the digestive system. Safe for children or sensitive adults. Used to induce sleep, nervous disorders, whooping cough, cramps. Overuse may cause insomnia. Indian women used the leaf tea to stimulate milk flow. Some medical people believe that the dried sap is psychological, because the taste and appearance is like that of opium poppy. A standard infusion used as needed.

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