Wild Lettuce vs Sow Thistle | Comparison & Identification 

Thank you, M'Lady, for so honoring me! And now we are all experts! Beautiful clear and concise video! I'm so enjoying your excellent work.

When I have debilitating pain, my wild lettuce goes in my pain tea, along with spirea and chamomile flowers. I don’t take Rx. I don’t need to. Excellent presentation.

This is a great identification video. Thank you. In the late 80s, I worked on a large produce farm in Griffith, NSW, Australia. The family grew hundreds of acres of Rockmelon (Cantaloupe) for local and export to the US. They also had a contract with a seed company (Yates) to supply melon seed, as well as giving them some secure paddocks (fields) to grow lettuce seed. Only the most trusted employees could work on the lettuce field. Why? Lettuce seed was, at the time, worth about AUD7000 for a seed bag (2ft x 2ft x 3ft). Further, the fields were coded by the seed company so no one knew what variety was being grown. They also had armed security guards onsite 24/7, and we had an overseer who ensured we weren't stealing leaves or even entire plants to allow the competition to know what was being grown. We weren't allowed to carry a backpack with food and water in it, even though the paddocks were at least 25 acres apiece. We would have to walk back to the parking area for our lunch break. Yes, they were worried about industrial spies stealing unique hybrids. Our job was to deheart lettuce so that they would throw to seed. We would work a hundred-plus acre field, then a week or so later go through and deheart any that had not started to throw stems. When the fields were harvested and winnowed, all the machinery had to be hit with flame guns to burn off any seed before going to the next field with a different variety. It was pretty crazy.

I wish my mom was still here. I miss her so much and I’ve never been so much into foraging and gardening than I am now. It makes me feel like I’m with my mom spending time with her. I just wish I could talk to her about this stuff and the stuff I’m learning. I believe she’d be proud. She was so smart and most of all wise and very funny.

This has been the most important video on identifying wild lettuce. I now feel confident that I have sow thistle. Thank you!

You have no idea how much you are appreciated OR how many folks lives will benefit from you just being born. Thank you my friend and God bless you.

Oh... I think I might have put down a sheet of paper as background, rather than the weathered wood, which is beautiful (!) but striated, and thus harder on the eyes, and distracting, when trying to differentiate between two very similar plants! The dappled light doesn't help either! (So many times I have tried photographing something in this light and the outcome is disappointing!!). OTHERWISE, Wow!! OK... now I want to backtrack; I've watched the whole video and this is FABULOUS!! YOU ARE SO THOROUGH!!! Thank you! So informative/detailed. I feel more educated now... and I deeply appreciate your doing this for us! (Am going to subscribe).

Good information to to identify those two plants .show us there uses . and how eat them

Thank you for sharing!! I have both. Growing side by side!! This is important when also trying to harvest to make tinctures for pain.

Wow I am so glad YT put this video on my feed. You did an excellent job of getting right to the point. The pictures, descriptions, comparisons, and info, so easy to absorb in my feeble brain. Nice job and thank you.

Good point! Never eat yellow snow. 😂🎉😂🎉😂🎉 And bushes get peed on too! 😂😂😂😂😂. Great info! Thanks.

Thank you for a well done and calm presentation. I have not yet seen a video comparing these leaves other than Greene Dean’s that mentions the difference in the shape of the leaf at the clasp point. Your wild lettuce has arrowhead hind points that extend past the stem like wings, whereas sow thistle Sonchus clasps in a recurve under the leaf like a fiddlehead on either side. I do not know the technical correct terminology for those parts. I realize my Sonchus sow thistle variety in my southern state my have a more pronounced recurve than those in northern climes.

Glad to find this channel … no bs just the facts! Love it Crazy amounts of wild lettuce here in SoCal … Subbed!

Thanks for all the information didn't know there was a plant that looks like wild cabbage

Wonderful video, very detailed, and definitely meet the title! Very happy to see you mention the real concerns, too many people have jump on the "it's natural, it doesn't have side effects", forgetting even too much water can kill ya. Thanks.

Where I'm from.. we eat them as salad with dinner/lunch but without dressing. My culture is fond of bitter herbs n vegs.

Absolutely wonderful video! I've been watching a young plant in our back yard that I'm now thinking may be lactuca because of the spiny midrib.

That was great. Grateful for your teaching.

thank you for this video. its been hard to get quality information. and the important danger warning. to many think its a plant so its safe. its like they completely forget that some plants like night shade is very dangerous. Yes people need to do their research and talk to their doctor. if their doctor throws a fit about natural medicine its time to look for a new doctor that wont do that.

Yes thank you Wayne for suggesting🙌 Happy to find & I sub her platform as I enjoyed her over all teaching. I grew up going to Canada for my summers, relatives. I still love Canadians. Love to all 💚💙

Very interesting information

Prickly lettuce grows here in PA in fields and all over the USA. I even found it in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. So... I think it spread lol

Very detailed. Thanks!!!!!

Thank you both for this videoi was just out on a night walk and I love to forage and or study what I come across, I bought some wild lettuce seeds but didn't grow them this year and just found a sow thistle tonight, I was thinking out was the wild lettuce version as they seem to be more rounded at the tip I think we've got some prikley wild lettuce that has bred with sow thistle

What's the difference in the dandelion,? Dandelion looks similar to both

Thank You Very Much!!! That was very informative and just what I needed! And thank you Wayne as well! 😊

Thank you for making this video those two are all over my yard and confused me.

A very good and informative video. Thank you, ma'am. I just subscribed. I lied. I'm going to subscribe right after I post this comment. 😆

Excellent information. Just subbed and looking forward to learning more!

Thanks so much for showing this..helpful video for me

Wow this is a great video,we have wild lettuce growing in our back yard.

Thank you so very much for this 🙏💕 I sincerely appreciate it! I enjoyed it, was entertained & learned quite a bit, WOW!! ALSO, I did not know there could be cardiac issues. Is this because it's a central nervous system depressant?

Very interesting, thanks, God Bless

Just subscribed. Keep at it with these informative videos.

Thanks. I have been calling them Dandelion. They are both edible

The stem of lettuce can be hollow if it gets big enough. I'm in Texas so not sure which species of lactuca i have. Definitely spines on the midrib.

1972 i remember that stuff..

Many thanks. Great info!

Excellent informative video. Now, what do I do with each of them?

My question is, which one is the safe one to use and how can each of them be preserved and used for medicinal purposes? I am just starting this journey of natural health and I have a yard full of the sow thistle, but no wild lettuce that I have seen as of yet is it safe to use that in place of the wild lettuce? Thanks for all your help. I just don’t know what to do with what I do have and if it is safe or not ❤😢

Thank you. But have you had a danily lion salad? My mom used to pick them from the backyard and clean them and use them for a salad. Can you please show a video of dandly lions and a weed we can't eat?

We thought it was the opposite of what you are saying. The spiny one was hard to eat while the other was easier to eat and took our pain away. Hmmmmm. The one we thought was wild lettuce had milk in it. But you are saying it’s the opposite than what we thought. Wow. I’ll have to get the seed out and regrow it.

I have the prickly kind but the leaf is not like these

Excellent. Thanks.

Great video thank you. 🌷 Can you eat Sow Thistle?

This is the video I was looking for thanks u

I’m finding it in central Texas

So I foraged wild lettuce and all things matched up to your description except the stalks are hollow, so I'm confused on that.

Prickly Wild Lettuce Seeds (Lactuca serriola) is what you are showing. There is the standard and that looks a LOT more like Cow Thistle then the one you are showing.

I ate one wild lettuce with flowers and leaves and stem with water are that edible

Mine doesnt have spines but its 10 feet tall

Question ❓ When is the best time to harvest wild lettuce 🥬?

When i see barbs on something my first thought is that you should definately not consume it.😊

How to indentify hempbit wild plant?

Will the latex of wild lettuce or sow thistle cause a numbing sensation when it gets on the skin? Also are there any species of wild lettuce that are hollow or any species of sow thistle that are not hollow also are there any species of wild lettuce that do not have the hairs/spines on the midrib?

So the only thing that is throwing me off here is that wild lettuce does not have a hollow stalk. I found a plant that has all the ids from the leaf shape and spines under the midriff of the leaf. But it has a hollow stalk

So it looks like I have Sow Thistle in my yard. Can you make Wild Lettuce Opium from them? You just answered that in your video; Then what about Dandelions, same family or not?

Thank you!!

I made tincture from the roots of wild lettuce and it certainly works well. As with most things, moderation is key. Great informative video, thank you.

Great content and much appreciated concern for those who might abuse Wild Lettuce. I have used WL in moderation for years now with great pain management success thanks to the knowledge of other great forages and plant purveyors such as Yarrow Willard master herbalist and Feral Foraging. Again, thank you for such great content !

Very informative. I want to learn more about the uses of these two plants. This was a good beginning. One or both randomly grow in my yard for years. I've always dug them up as weeds along with dandelions. Henceforth they will be given more respect.

Thank you for this. Your calm voice was very clear . No background noise to make it hard to understand. I really appreciated this very much.

Well done. This lettuce showed up in my yard 4 years ago and one plant, when it broke in the wind, measured 14 feet. There were a dozen plants that year and 30 the next. I wish all knowledge-providers were as succinct and informative as you were in this video.

Thank you for being one of the few that differentiate between sow thistle and wild lettuce. Too often they are referred to as one in the same. Even milk thistle is thrown in...3 plants as 1. Wish people would leave the topic alone if they don't know what they're talking about

Love the format and no nonsense real information..👍

Love the well detailed tutorial in identifying the plants 👍🏽

All the domesticated leaf and head lettuces are very easy to find the seeds. I always suggest getting the seeds of your favorite greens and just broadcast them all over your field and let them take over. They will grow well and thick and take over. You don't even need to water them. They will all live off the dew. You will have all the greens you need or want. The same goes for onions and other garden plants that can grow wild. After all, every domesticated plant was once wild.

It is absolutely amazing on how complex plants are , just as every thing on earth . How everything is connected and has a purpose . A point i like to meantion is if it has a defensive characteristic like prickles or spines its protecting something valuable... For the most part . general tule of thumb

I’m glad I saw this because I think I have wild lettuce but now I think it’s sow thistle. And I was going to make a little tincture. I don’t want to be messing with the wrong plant . That could go wrong .

Thank you for this wonderful Vadim! Im not sure if I missed it. Is sow thistle more edible than wild lettuce?

This video is good timing for me, a new subscriber. I just transplanted a sow thistle, thinking it was wild lettuce. Your detailed video confirmed what I have learned about the difference between the two plants. I was able to forage some wild lettuce at an abandoned lot, after a rain, and I now have it setting up as a tincture.

Make sure you do not confuse either of these with groundsel, which is poisonous.

You give me the confidence of identifying these, as I have always been confused between these two. Huge thanks to you. Please make more video on similar topics.

Thank you for thos video, i have been interested in learning about wild lettuce for pain, i quit using big pharma meds years ago!

But is also true that people are using it without harm. It is all about dosage, that is difficult to calculate because every plant has its own different percentage of compounds, given by the different area and soil. Someone suggested to start just with a drop and go on little by little until found the right dosage. I think that is the wisest thing to do, not to ditch the usage of the herb.

I needed this lesson. I thought sow thistle was a type of dandelion,lol. Thank you for teaching real helpful things

Thank you so much for this video❣️ I’ve seen so many trying to distinguish between the 2 & still not clear. Yours is *definitive* . Great job. 💚

Thank you for your amazing info, especially about the dangers, I've not heard of them before in any blog.

When I studied herbs years ago I read that the ancient Romans recommended that women having problems producing enough milk to have a soup made from lettuce. It did not mention what kind of lettuce but it was prescribed to calm the women.

Wow! Such a simple video but Soooo informative. Not to much information, just enough

This is the best video I have found to help differentiate and identify these... thank you for your thoughtful detailed comparison!

Thank you for such an informative video. Never knew there was a difference, but I'm much wiser now. Would have been cooking sow thistle and would have thought but it doesn't work like they claim.

Both are edible. "The leaves and stems of both species can be cooked like vegetables, added to stir fries and stews." says Google.

I hope you do more

Thank you for this video! Cleared up my confusion!

Great video! Thank you for pronouncing sow thistle correctly - sow, as in female pig, not sow as in sowing seeds.

Wild Lettuce , Grow One plant and you'll have seeds for life . Easy to tell the difference .. Thanks for Sharing this amazing plants details ...

There's one video with the wild lettuce that the guy said something about it having pain-relieving properties anyone know about that?

The lettuce I have doesn't have much latex or any prickles on the back. Are these medicinal?

Looked at this again, slowly, and I realize all the ones I have are a tiny bit different. They are confusing so I guess I'm actually ok.

Just ran across this video and canbnotbthanknyou enough for thebl simple and CLEAR identification. Been walking KY yard looking at my "weeds" and could not tell the difference! Hoping I have both in my yard

Lactuca verosa has been a weed in Western Kentucky as long as I can remember of 71 years. It's a wonderful, much safer option to heavy prescription pain killers.

The stem on my plant is purple. Im n NC.

When it gets real tall, wild lettuce is also hollow

Thank you for making this.

We eat them all. We ate a bunch for Passover n had no pain at all. We had no complications at all. We are it almost daily in the garden.

Wonderful video!! Thank you so much. Cud you do more of these?

beAuTiFuL

Wow this is such a good and disruptive way to compare the both of them ❤

Dry informative you’re absolutely right I was watching on RU-vid and a commercial popped up of a lady that’s a herbalist and she explained how you could boil down the wild, lettuce, kind of fermented in the way and develop a painkiller and why it peaked my interest is because I’m a chronic pain sufferer and I take some pretty strong pain meds and I’ve been trying for a while to get off of them and go towards more natural healthier pain management, but you also have to think as you said there are many many things that could go wrong especially if it’s taken incorrectly, so you really opened my eyes up to this and have to do more investigation and know from certified herbalist the proper amount to take if this is what Im leaning towards for a stopping addictive pharmaceutical medications. Thank you so much for this video and your amazing information. You’ve open my eyes to the seriousness, and penitential harm that can be caused, that so many aren’t aware of. Thank you again.