By Jeanne Yeoman
Nebraska Extension Master Gardener
Dandelions are everywhere, delighting children and frustrating those who prefer a perfect green lawn. “Dandelion” comes from the French “dent de lion”, meaning lion’s teeth, referring to their serrated leaves. Dandelions have a long history of use across various cultures. Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans used the plant, and they have been incorporated into Chinese traditional medicine for over a thousand years. Every part of the dandelion is edible. Native to Eurasia, dandelions were introduced to North America by colonists in the 1600s who considered them a resilient food and forage plant with medicinal values. Dandelion leaves can be eaten raw or cooked and provide nutrients such as vitamins A, C, K, E, folate, and B vitamins, along with minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium, and potassium. Dandelion flowers are also edible and can be utilized in salads, sautéed dishes, or to make tea, jam, honey, vinegar, and wine. They also have antioxidant properties. The root can be used to make tea and serves as a source of prebiotic fiber. Before consuming dandelions, be sure they have not been treated with herbicides, and avoid harvesting them in areas accessible to pets.
Dandelions belong to the Asteraceae or daisy family. They are perennial plants that prefer full sun and moist, fertile soil, but they can tolerate partial shade and drier soil once established, and they are known for their ability to grow in disturbed and compacted soils. Dandelions produce a deep taproot that can penetrate 6-18 inches into the soil. Although they primarily reproduce from seed, they can regenerate new plants from taproot segments, even when the plant is cut off at or below the soil surface. In the fall, they lose their leaves and store nutrients in their roots. In the spring, they grow new leaves and the familiar yellow flowers. The flowers are followed by distinctive white seed heads; each plant can produce up to 20,000 viable seeds. Each seed has a feathery parachute of soft white hairs, making them easily carried by the wind. If control of dandelions is needed, it is important to understand their lifecycle and growth habits.
Dandelions are usually classified as weeds because they tend to grow where they are not wanted. They are also among the first plants to bloom in the spring, providing a vital food source for pollinators when other plants are scarce. The plant is also good for loosening up compacted soil. Its deep taproot makes it easier for other plants to establish and grow. Dandelions pull nutrients from deep within the soil, making them available to other plants and acting as a natural fertilizer. When dandelion leaves and roots die back and decompose, nutrients are released back into the topsoil. Decaying dandelion roots create tunnels in the soil, providing habitat and attracting earthworms and beneficial microbes, which further contribute to soil health and nutrient cycling.
If dandelions are not your cup of tea. They can be easily managed by pulling and digging, but it is important to pull the entire plant and the deep taproot. Preventing plants from going to seed will help, as will mulching and removing new plants as soon as they are noticed. Promoting a thick and healthy lawn helps prevent new dandelions from establishing. If you decide to use an herbicide, be sure to select one intended for dandelions and apply it according to the label’s directions. If you don’t see the need for a pristine, monoculture carpet of green for your lawn, let dandelions grow and simply mow them with the grass.