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Sonchus arvensis - L.

Field Milk Thistle

Author	L.	Botanical references	17
Family	Compositae	Genus	Sonchus
Synonyms
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Europe, including Britain, south and east from Scandanavia to Spain and W. Asia.
Habitat	Arable and waste land, ditches and on the drift line of salt and brackish margins, avoiding acid soils[4, 9, 17]. A persistent weed of cultivation[1].
Edibility Rating	2 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	1 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 1.2m.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in saline soil. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats

Cultivated Beds;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Leaves; Root; Stem.

Edible Uses: Coffee.

Young leaves - raw or cooked[4, 5, 52, 54]. A slightly bitter taste, they can be added to salads or cooked like spinach[9, 183]. The leaves are rich in mineral salts and vitamin C[9], they contain about 47mg of vitamin C per 100g and 2% protein (dry weight)[173]. It might be best, though it is not necessary, to remove the marginal prickles[9]. Stems - cooked like asparagus or rhubarb[12]. Young root - cooked[12]. The roasted root is used as a coffee substitute[177, 183].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Antiinflammatory; Pectoral; Sedative.

The leaves are used as a poultice and are said to have anti-inflammatory activity[4, 222]. An infusion of the leaves has been used in the treatment of caked breasts[257]. A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of asthma, coughs and other chest complaints[222]. A tea made from the leaves is said to calm the nerves[222].

Other Uses

Insecticide.

The plant is said to have insecticidal properties[218].

Cultivation details

A common garden weed, see notes on its habitat if you want to encourage it. This species has been cultivated for its edible leaves by the Maoris of New Zealand, in Indonesia there are improved varieties selected for their edible leaves[153, 183]. A good companion for onions, tomatoes, corn as well as the cucumber and squash family[20].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in situ. A common garden weed, this species should not normally need any assistance.

Links

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[5] Mabey. R. Food for Free. Collins 1974 ISBN 0-00-219060-5
Edible wild plants found in Britain. Fairly comprehensive, very few pictures and rather optimistic on the desirability of some of the plants.

[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.

[12] Loewenfeld. C. and Back. P. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles 0 ISBN 0-7153-7971-2
A handy pocket guide.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.

[52] Larkcom. J. Salads all the Year Round. Hamlyn 1980
A good and comprehensive guide to temperate salad plants, with full organic details of cultivation.

[54] Hatfield. A. W. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd 1977 ISBN 0-584-10141-4
Interesting reading.

[153] Brooker. S. G., Cambie. R. C. and Cooper. R. C. Economic Native Plants of New Zealand. Oxford University Press 1991 ISBN 0-19-558229-2
An interesting and readable book on the useful plants of New Zealand.

[173] Crowe. A. Native Edible Plants of New Zealand. Hodder and Stoughton 1990 ISBN 0-340-508302
A very well written and illustrated book based on the authors own experiments with living on a native diet.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

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