Leaf
Krzysztof Ziarnek, Wikimedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
Lamb's lettuce
Valerianella locusta (L.) Laterr.
Also known as: Corn salad, Mache
Family: Caprifoliaceae
10 to 30 cm tall
Grown in the vegetable garden in winter, also wild in fields and wasteland
Flowering: April – June
Full sun
Part shade
Very hardy, withstands frosts of about -10°C
❓ How do you recognise this plant?
Lamb's lettuce is one of the few salad crops that grows and can be harvested in the depths of winter, withstanding moderate frosts — it fills the vegetable garden when most other leaf vegetables have disappeared.
🍃 Leaves
Small, spoon-shaped, in a basal rosette, tender, bright green (the part eaten)
🌸 Flowers
Tiny, pale blue to lilac, grouped in small dense clusters
🍎 Fruits
Small globose achene
🪵 Bark
Slender herbaceous stem, forked branching
🗺️ Distribution
Widespread throughout France, grown as a winter salad
🐝 Value for pollinators
Small nectar-rich flowers, visited by small foraging insects
✂️ Horticultural uses
Cold-season salad crop, sown in late summer for harvesting all winter
⚠️ Possible toxicity
No known toxicity — leaves edible raw
🌿 Other Caprifoliaceae to discover
ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.
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