Native throughout much of temperate Eurasia, and locally introduced into roadsides, fields, and other disturbed areas. Probably somewhat overlooked, but still fortunately uncommon in Michigan. First collected in 1906 in Van Buren Co.

The open corymbiform inflorescence with long-stalked large heads can be very distinctive in the field, but not always clear on fragmentary herbarium specimens. The petioles are solid, while in A. minus they are hollow at the center. See Dister (2010) for more details.

The large, fleshy taproot of young (vegetative) plants of this species is a well-known vegetable in Asian cuisines, now popularly known by the Japanese name gobo.