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Tall Blue Lettuce vs Canada Lettuce

These two species are often confused by people unfamiliar with them, but they are usually easy to tell apart if you know what characteristics to look for.

Tall Blue Lettuce (Lactuca biennis)

Canada Lettuce (Lactuca canadensis)

Flowers usually pale blue, rarely white or pale yellow. Never a rich yellow.
Photo © bobkennedy, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Flowers a rich yellow color, rarely with reddish tinge or bluish.
Photo © Laura Costello, CC BY 4.0.
Pappus (wispy part that carries seeds away in the wind) tan, grayish, or light brown.
Photo © Reuven Martin, Public Domain.
Pappus (wispy part that carries seeds away in the wind) bright white.
Photo © aarongunnar, CC BY 4.0.

References & External Resources

These short lists show only links helpful for ID. For a complete list of references and resources also covering other aspects of ecology, visit the links section of the full article on each plant, whcih is the first entry here.

Tall Blue Lettuce (Lactuca biennis)

Canada Lettuce (Lactuca canadensis)

Lactuca biennis | Go Botany (About This Site)

Lactuca canadensis | Go Botany (About This Site)

No corresponding entry

Lactuca canadensis (Wild Lettuce) | Illinois Wildflowers (About This Site)

Lactuca biennis | Flora of North America (About This Site)

Lactuca canadensis | Flora of North America (About This Site)

Lactuca biennis | Biota of North America Project (BONAP) (About This Site)

Lactuca canadensis | Biota of North America Project (BONAP) (About This Site)