Tips of rays are usually square and finely toothed
Plants contain milky sap
Fruits have white, hair-like bristles, often forming round heads
Guide to Identify Presented Species of the Dandelion group
BLUE OR PURPLE RAYS
Lactuca – Lettuce Hairless plants with milky sap, 20-200 cm tall. Meadows, disturbed ground.
Flowerheads blue to whitish, 1-2 cm wide, with many rays, in open clusters.
Leaves alternate, narrowly lance-shaped, entire or toothed to pinnately lobed.
YELLOW RAYS, FLOWERHEADS MOSTLY SOLITARY
Tragopogon – Salsify Stems up to 1 m tall, hairless. Open, often disturbed areas, introduced plants.
Flowerheads yellow, 3-6 cm wide. The involucral bracts are long and narrow.
Leaves alternate, grass-like, linear, clasping stem, sometimes curved back.
YELLOW RAYS, FLOWERHEADS 2 OR MORE ON EACH STEM
Lactuca serriola – Prickly Lettuce Stem 30-150 cm tall, hairless, branching at sharp angles. Weed, disturbed areas.
Flowerheads 10-15 mm wide, with 13 to 27 ray florets, in open clusters.
Leaves alternate, pinnately lobed, prickly on the midrib beneath and on edges.
