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| Online Flora of the Maltese Islands by Stephen Mifsud |
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Sonchus oleraceus (Smooth Sow Thistle) |
Sonchus oleraceus (ASTERACEAE.)
Images for this profile are taken from the Maltese Islands after year 2000.
Website launch: Oct-2002
Taxonomic update: Aug-2026
Code update: Jul-2026 |
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| Nomenclature and General Information |
Species name : |
Sonchus oleraceusL.
Published in Sp. Pl. : 794 (1753) |
Synonyms :
(basionym or principal syn.) |
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Plant Family : |
Asteraceae Bercht. & J.Presl (The Daisy or Sunflower Family) Previously included in Compositae
123 species from the Asteraceae family are recorded from the Maltese Islands. | English name(s) : | Smooth Sow Thistle, Annual Sow Thistle, Common Sow Thistle |
Maltese name(s) : |
Tfiefa komuni |
Status for Malta : |
Indigenous. Present on the Maltese islands before man |
Frequency : |
Very Common Common Frequent Scarce Rare Very rare Extinct |
Growth form : |
Germination type [info]: Dicotyledon
Raunkiaer lifeform [info]: Therophyte ( annual plants, herbaceous, die after fruiting/seeding stage ) |
Legal Protection : |
Not legally protected till the last update of this website (22/Aug/2025) |
Red List (1989) : |
Not listed in the Red Data Book of the Maltese Islands |
Flowering Time : |
October – July |
Colour of Flowers: |
Yellow |
Toxicity: |
Not particularly toxic |
Name Derivation : |
Sonchus: A very old Greek name used for several sow-thistle plants. (Greek origin)
oleraceus: used for cooking as a vegetable or herb, but often used to indicate that it is edible. ()
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Planting in rural areas : |
Can be planted in rural areas according to ERA Guidelines |
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Description, Habitat and Distribution | |
Botanical Description |
Annual or biennial; stem 10-140 cm, simple or branched, often glandular-hairy in upper part and sometimes white-tomentose at base of capitula and on upper part of peduncles. Leaves glabrous, the lower undivided, with narrowly winged petiole, the upper larger, pinnatifid to pinnatisect, lyrate or sometimes runcinate with the lobes not or only slightly constricted at the base, with acute auricles. Involucral bracts 27-35. Ligules about as long as corolla-tube. Achenes 2.5-3.75 x 0.75-1 mm, oblanceolate, rugose between the ribs, weakly compressed; pappus 5-8 mm, more or less persistent. | |
Habitat in Europe |
Cultivated ground and waste places
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Preferred habitat in Malta |
Common in various habitats, somewhat prefering artificial habitats such as disturbed ground, steppe, footpaths and roadsides, abandoned gardens and fields, walls (including rubble walls) farmhouses, polluted ares, irrigated fields, etc
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Chromosome number(s) |
2n=32 | |
Distributional range |
Almost throughout Europe
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Distributional maps from various sources |
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Flora Europaea till 1993) |
All Europe except Faroe Islands, Iceland, Svalbard archipelago
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Occurrences in Europe
(from Euro+Med Checklist till 2024)
Country codes
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Ab(A N) AE(G T) Ag Al Ar Au(A L) Be(B L) BH Bl(I M N) Br Bu By dCa(C F G H L P T) Cg Co Cr Cs Ct Cy Da Eg Es Fe Ga(C F M) Ge Gg Gr Hb(E N) He Ho Hs(A G S) Hu Ir It Jo La Le Li Lt Lu Ma dMd(D M P) Mk Mo No Po Rf(C CS E K N NW S) Rm Sa dSg Si(M S) Sk Sl Sn Sr Su Sy Tn Tu(A E) Uk(K U) [Ag Az(C F G J L M P S T) aIs]
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| Links & Further literature
(0 papers) |
Google Web |
Google Images |
Google Scholar |
Research Gate |
Wikipedia |
JSTOR |
GBIF |
Med Checklist |
Cat. of Life |
EoL |
IPNI |
World Flora Online |
Plants of the World Online |
Vienna Virt. Herb. |
RBGE Herbarium |
KEW Herbarium |
MNHN |
Garden Database |
IUCN |
TROPICOS |
Kindly Email if there are papers and publications about local
studies or information about this species to be included in the list above.
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Sales and Donations
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Sales of seeds of wild plant from Malta: Seeds of selected wild plant species may be available for academic studies, research purposes, or personal use. Please note that not all species can be supplied or exported. Availability is subject to seasonal seed production, stock levels, and applicable regulations, including Maltese legislation and CITES requirements where relevant. Protected and endemic species cannot be sold (at least without the relevant environmental permits).
How it works: First, submit a quotation request by completing the Online Quotation Form (link provided on the right side of this table). Once your request has been reviewed, you will receive confirmation regarding seed availability, export eligibility (where applicable), pricing, and any transport charges. Payments are accepted by Revolut, bank transfer (IBAN), or PayPal only; credit and debit card payments are not accepted.
Please note that local orders are currently not being accepted. Seek Maltese nurseries and NGOs for local orders.
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Online Quotation (Seeds)
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Online Purchase (Images)
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Atlas Flora Europaea
GBIF Distribution Map
WFO Distribution map
