Lactuca
| Lactuca | |
|---|---|
| |
| Lactuca tuberosa | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Subfamily: | Cichorioideae |
| Tribe: | Cichorieae |
| Subtribe: | Lactucinae |
| Genus: | Lactuca L. |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Lactuca, commonly known as lettuce, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. The genus includes at least 50 species, distributed worldwide, but mainly in temperate Eurasia.
Its best-known representative is the garden lettuce (Lactuca sativa), with its many varieties. "Wild lettuce" commonly refers to the wild-growing relatives of common garden lettuce. Many species are common weeds. Lactuca species are diverse and take a wide variety of forms. They are annuals, biennials, perennials, or shrubs.[2] Their flower heads have yellow, blue, or white ray florets. Some species are bitter-tasting.
Most wild lettuces are xerophytes, adapted to dry habitat types. Some occur in more moist areas, such as the mountains of central Africa.[2]
Diversity
[edit]
There are different concepts of the species within Lactuca. It is not clear how many distinct species are known, and estimates vary from 50[3] to 75[4] so far.
- Lactuca acanthifolia (Crete, Turkey)
- Lactuca aculeata (Asia Minor)
- Lactuca acuminata
- Lactuca adenophora
- Lactuca alpestris (Crete)
- Lactuca alpina (syn. Cicerbita alpina)[7] (Europe) - alpine sow-thistle, alpine blue-sow-thistle, tall blue lettuce
- Lactuca altaica (Eurasia)
- Lactuca attenuata[8] (Africa)
- Lactuca aurea (Europe)
- Lactuca azerbaijanica (Iran)
- Lactuca biennis (North America) – tall blue lettuce, blue wood lettuce
- Lactuca calophylla (Africa)
- Lactuca canadensis (North America) – Canada wild lettuce, tall lettuce
- Lactuca corymbosa (Congo)
- Lactuca crambifolia (Turkestan)
- Lactuca cyprica (Cyprus) - Cyprus lettuce
- Lactuca deltoidea
- Lactuca dissecta (Asia)
- Lactuca dolichophylla (Asia)
- Lactuca dregeana (South Africa) – melkdissel, slaaidissel
- Lactuca dumicola
- Lactuca erostrata[9] (Pakistan)
- Lactuca fenzlii
- Lactuca floridana (North America) – Florida lettuce, woodland lettuce
- Lactuca georgica (Asia)
- Lactuca glaucifolia (Asia)
- Lactuca graciliflora (Asia)
- Lactuca graminifolia (Americas) – grassleaf lettuce
- Lactuca haimanniana
- Lactuca henryi
- Lactuca hirsuta (North America) – downy lettuce, hairy lettuce
- Lactuca hispida
- Lactuca homblei[10] (Zaire, Zambia)
- Lactuca imbricata[11] (Africa)
- Lactuca indica (Asia) - Indian lettuce
- Lactuca inermis (Africa, Arabian Peninsula)
- Lactuca intricata (Albania, Greece, Turkey)
- Lactuca jamaicensis (Jamaica)
- Lactuca kanitziana
- Lactuca kochiana
- Lactuca lasiorhiza[12] (Africa)
- Lactuca ludoviciana (North America) – biannual lettuce
- Lactuca macrophylla
- Lactuca mira
- Lactuca muralis
- Lactuca mwinilungensis[13] (Zaire, Zambia)
- Lactuca nana[14] (Africa)
- Lactuca orientalis (Asia, Egypt)
- Lactuca palmensis[15] (Canary Islands)
- Lactuca paradoxa
- Lactuca parishii
- Lactuca perennis (Europe) – blue lettuce, mountain lettuce
- Lactuca persica
- Lactuca petrensis
- Lactuca quercina (Eurasia)
- Lactuca racemosa
- Lactuca raddeana (Asia)
- Lactuca rechingeriana
- Lactuca rosularis (Iran, Turkmenistan)
- Lactuca saligna (Eurasia) – willow lettuce, least lettuce, narrow-leaf lettuce
- Lactuca sativa – lettuce, garden lettuce
- Lactuca scarioloides (western Asia)
- Lactuca schulzeana (Angola, Cameroon, Zaire)
- Lactuca schweinfurthii (Africa)
- Lactuca serriola (Africa, Asia, Europe) – prickly lettuce, compassplant, scarole, milk thistle
- Lactuca setosa (Africa)
- Lactuca sibirica (Eurasia)
- Lactuca singularis[16] (Spain)
- Lactuca songeensis
- Lactuca spinidens (Tajikistan, Turkmenistan)
- Lactuca stebbinsii[17] (Angola)
- Lactuca takhtadzhianii (Armenia)
- Lactuca tatarica (Northern Hemisphere) – blue lettuce
- Lactuca tenerrima (southern Europe, Morocco)
- Lactuca tetrantha[18] (Cyprus)
- Lactuca tinctociliata
- Lactuca triangulata (Asia)
- Lactuca triquetra
- Lactuca tuberosa (Eurasia)
- Lactuca ugandensis
- Lactuca undulata (Asia)
- Lactuca viminea (Africa, Asia, Europe) – pliant lettuce
- Lactuca virosa (Europe, northern Africa) – bitter lettuce, great lettuce
- Lactuca watsoniana[19] (Azores)
- Lactuca winkleri (Tajikistan)
Ecology
[edit]Lactuca species are used as food plants by the larvae of many Lepidoptera species.
Etymology
[edit]'Lactuca' is derived from Latin and means 'having milky sap'. 'Lactuca' and 'lactic' (of or relating to milk) have the same root word, 'lactis'.[20]
References
[edit]- ^ "Lactuca L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ a b Lebeda, Aleš; Dolezalová, Ivana; Feráková, Viera; Astley, Dave (2004). "Geographical Distribution of Wild Lactuca Species (Asteraceae, Lactuceae)". The Botanical Review. 70 (3): 328–356. doi:10.1663/0006-8101(2004)070[0328:GDOWLS]2.0.CO;2.
- ^ a b Lactuca. Flora of China.
- ^ a b Lactuca. Flora of North America.
- ^ GRIN Species Records of Lactuca. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).
- ^ Lactuca. The Plant List. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and Missouri Botanical Garden.
- ^ "Cicerbita alpina". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
- ^ Lactuca attenuata. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Bano, R. and M. Qaiser. (2011). A taxonomic revision of the genus Lactuca L. (Cichorieae-Asteraceae) from Pakistan and Kashmir. Pakistan Journal of Botany 43(5) 2259–268.
- ^ Lactuca homblei. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Lactuca imbricata. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Lactuca lasiorhiza. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Lactuca mwinilungensis. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Lactuca nana. Flora Zambesiaca. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- ^ Santos Guerra, A. (2011). "Lactuca palmensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T172087A6821101. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T172087A6821101.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ Draper Munt, D. (2011). "Lactuca singularis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T172180A6844238. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T172180A6844238.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ Kilian, N. (2001). Lactuca stebbinsii (Lactuceae, Compositae), a puzzling new species from Angola.[permanent dead link] Willdenowia - Annals of the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin - Dahlem 31(1) 71–8.
- ^ Kyratzis, A.; Christodoulou, C.S.; Kailis, C.; Papasavvas, C.; Tsintides, T. (2011). "Lactuca tetrantha". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T172257A6858989. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T172257A6858989.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ Schaefer, H. (2011). "Lactuca watsoniana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T161995A5525315. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T161995A5525315.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521866453 (hardback), ISBN 9780521685535 (paperback). pp 228
