Minimum: 30+ Seeds Prickly Wild Lettuce Seeds (Lactuca serriola) — The Compass Plant That Points North & Soothes Pain Prickly Wild Lettuce is the forgotten forager's treasure: a self-seeding biennial bearing multiple names hinting at ancient power... wild opium, compass plant, milk thistle. Named compass plant because its spiny-edged basal leaves align themselves north-south, seeking the sun's arc. Once you understand what wild lettuce contains... lactucarium, a milky latex flowing from cut stems and hardening into sedative resin gentler than opium... every leaf makes sense. This plant has been part of human medicine since Hippocrates prescribed it for pain, insomnia, and anxiety. Ancient Egyptians used it for relief. Medieval herbalists harvested it for calming properties. It remains remarkably powerful: the latex is most concentrated when flowering, though young leaves contain enough lactucarium to produce genuine effect. The plant is straightforward: a robust biennial reaching 5-6 feet, producing pale yellow flowers July-September, self-fertile and unfussy about conditions. Grows almost anywhere with sun and decent drainage. Young leaves are edible when tender and mild, becoming bitter as it matures. Perfect for wild salads or cooking as potherb. Who Grows Prickly Wild Lettuce Seeds? Herbalists and foragers valuing traditional plant medicine. Gardeners seeking medicinal herbs with genuine effect. Anyone exploring the boundary between food and medicine. Wildcraft enthusiasts preserving knowledge. Gardeners wanting something genuinely tough. What This Wild Heirloom Medicinal Herb Actually Is Lactuca serriola, Prickly Wild Lettuce or Wild Opium. Biennial native to Europe and Asia, naturalized throughout North America. Erect, taprooted growth 5-6 feet tall. Blue-green foliage with prickles along leaf margins and underside of midvein. Basal rosette of lobed, toothed leaves. Pale yellow flowers July-September. Self-fertile. Contains lactucarium... milky latex with lactucin, lactulone, and trace alkaloids producing mild sedative, analgesic effects. Young leaves edible but bitter. Grows readily in full sun, well-drained soil. In the Kitchen, Garden & Herbal Medicine Young Salads: Tender early leaves eaten raw with milder greens. Cooked Potherb: Young shoots cooked briefly. Herbal Tea: Dried leaves steeped for sedative effect. Medicinal Latex: Stems milked for lactucarium resin when flowering. Sleep Support: Traditionally used for insomnia. Pain Relief: Historical use for rheumatic and general pain. Garden Medicine: Self-seeds; readily establishes. Growing Prickly Wild Lettuce Seeds Season: Biennial, grows as annual when spring-sown. Zones: Hardy to Zone 4. Sunlight: Full sun essential. Soil: Well-drained, mildly acid to alkaline. Planting: Direct sow or start indoors after frost. Spacing: 12-18 inches between plants. Germination: 60-70 days to flowering. Flowering: July-September. Harvest Leaves: Pinch when young and tender. Harvest Latex: Cut flowering stalks, collect sap daily. Maintenance: Minimal. Self-seeds prolifically. Before You Close This Page Prickly Wild Lettuce, wild opium, compass plant. Biennial 5-6 feet tall. Spiny blue-green leaves orienting north-south. Yellow flowers July-September. Young leaves edible but bitter. Contains lactucarium... traditional sedative and pain remedy. Milky latex most concentrated at flowering. Hardy Zone 4, full sun, well-drained soil. Self-seeds readily. The ancient forager's remedy that still works.
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