Ixeris stolonifera aka Creeping Lettuce

Ixeris stolonifera is a small perennial in the daisy family, Asteraceae. The RHS gives its common name as creeping lettuce. Kew places its native range in temperate eastern Asia. It is not native to Britain or Ireland. In Japan, it grows in fields, waste ground and mountain slopes. These records place it in both farmed and uncultivated ground.

Plants For A Future gives a height of about 0.7 feet (0.2 metres). It lists a spread of about 1.6 feet (0.5 metres). This makes it a low plant, wider than it is tall. The source lists cultivated beds as a place to grow it. The supplied records give no further details of its leaves or stems. They also give no account of its fruit. Its flowers have both male and female organs. Insects pollinate them, but the evidence gives no flowering season.

Plants For A Future suggests a sunny site with good drainage. It also lists light shade as suitable for growth. The plant prefers moist soil rather than ground that stays dry. It accepts sandy, loamy and clay soils, provided water can drain. Its listed pH range runs from mildly acid to mildly alkaline. This includes neutral soil. The source stresses that its cultivation knowledge is limited. These growing notes should therefore be read as guidance, not firm trial results.

British hardiness remains uncertain in the supplied evidence. Plants For A Future suggests that milder areas may suit it outdoors. That view rests on its native range, not a stated hardiness test. The source proposes spring seed sowing in a cold frame. It suggests a thin seed covering and separate pots for seedlings. It then suggests greenhouse shelter through their first winter. Planting out follows in late spring or early summer, after frost risk. Spring or autumn division is another method it proposes trying.

Plants For A Future lists the leaves and roots as edible. It gives no preparation method and rates food use at one out of five. The source records no known hazards, but this does not establish safety. It lists no known medicinal or other uses. The supplied evidence names no pests or diseases. It also lacks details on garden display or wildlife value beyond insect pollination.