What is this? Lettuce?

[Rogue]

This plant has taken over my entire property. I know the previous home owner planted a large variety of vegetables including lettuce varieties. Is this a lettuce variety? My golden greek will eat it occasionally, but will often pass it up for nearby dandelions, violets, or hollyhocks.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

This plant has taken over my entire property. I know the previous home owner planted a large variety of vegetables including lettuce varieties. Is this a lettuce variety? My golden greek will eat it occasionally, but will often pass it up for nearby dandelions, violets, or hollyhocks.

It is a lettuce, but it's wild prickly lettuce (Lactuca serriola), a close relative and possible ancestor of the many varieties of cultivated lettuce (Lactuca sativa). Prickly lettuce is native to Europe, but naturalized in the US. They are common in Colorado, and we have lots of them up here in Westminster, too.

Being related to cultivated lettuce, as well as dandelions and chicories, prickly lettuce is edible. However, like a lot of plants, as it matures it produces more metabolites to deter herbivory (its milky latex sap contains oxalate and lactucarium). So, I think you'll find that your tortoises prefer to eat this plant when it's younger and more palatable, than when it's older and more bitter.

 

[Rogue]

Thank you again GTT, nice to have some fellow CO tortoise owners to educate me.

So nutrition-wise, is this something I should be trying to cultivate and feed (while young and tender) to my greek? Otherwise, I'd like to yank them out.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Thanks you again GTT, nice to have some fellow CO tortoise owners to educate me.

So nutrition-wise, is this something I should be trying to cultivate and feed (while young and tender) to my greek? Otherwise, I'd like to yank them out.

Well, we don't have a backyard (yet), so I have to be careful around here, because the grounds are sprayed at certain times each year. Having said that, once we do get our own house, I am going to be growing this stuff, along with dandelions and chicories, like there's no tomorrow!! I hope that answers your question.

 

[Yvonne G]

Or instead of pulling it out, just take the scissors and clip it back and toss it. As the new growth re-appears, you can then cut that for your tortoise.