This winter we’re categorizing plants in our database by family. This week’s post is plants in the Asclepiadaceae (Milkweeds) & Aspleniaceae (Spleenwort) families, & Asteraceae (Daisy) tribes Cardueae (Thistles) &  Cichoroideae (Chicories, Dandelions, & Lettuces). Cardueae have spiny-margined leaves and flowerheads that contain only disk flowers. Cichorieae have milky latex and flowerheads that contain only ray flowers. More about Asteraceae next week.

Photography by Ken Borgfeldt, Daudie Colson, David Heavner, Richard Holzman, Penny Longhurst, Jim Poling, Lucy Prim, Randy Richardson, & Joe Standaert. Botanical plant names seem to change almost every day, but for now we use those approved by ITIS, the Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name. Click on any picture to zoom & enter the slide show.