Dandelion Facts
W HAT ARE THEY USED FOR ?
Every part of the dandelion is useful: root, leaves,
and flower. It can be used for food, medicine and
dye for coloring
During World War Two, the Russians cultivated a
species of dandelion for its “milk,” which was
high in latex and could be used as a rubber
substitute
Dandelions are a green and growing first aid kit:
Used for loss of appetite, upset stomach, gas,
muscle aches, and bruises. Dandelion is also used
to increase urine production and as a laxative to
increase bowel movements.
Dandelion
Dandelion Names
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale): Other
names include lion’s tooth, priest’s crown,
blowball, swine snout, and cankerwort, Pee in
the bed, Priest's Crown, Fairy Clock,
Old Man’s Clock.
The name we know it by, dandelion, comes from
Dents Lioness, Medieval Latin, or Dent de Lion,
French, both meaning tooth of the lion.
Where did they come from?
They were well known to ancient Egyptians,
Greeks and Romans, and have been used in
Chinese traditional medicine for over a thousand
years. Dandelions probably arrived in North
America on the Mayflower – not as stowaways,
but brought on purpose for their medicinal
benefits
In foods, dandelion is used as salad greens, and in
soups, wine, and teas. The roasted root is used as
a coffee substitute
Dandelions are good for your lawn. Their widespreading roots loosen hard-packed soil, aerate
the earth and help reduce erosion. The deep
taproot pulls nutrients such as calcium from deep
in the soil and makes them available to other
plants. Dandelions actually fertilize the grass.
Growth and Harvest
Dandelions are fast growers, the sunny yellow
flowers going from bud to seed in days. But they
are also long-lived – an individual plant can live
for years, so the dandelion lurking in a corner of
the playground might be older than the children
running past it. The root sinks deeper over the
years, and can go down 15 feet.
Harvest the leaves before flowers appear.
Spring and autumn are the best times to harvest
dandelion roots. Dandelion buds are good pickled
and added to omelets.
Caution: only harvest and eat dandelions from
organic lawns as pesticides can be harmful if
ingested
NUTRITION
Dandelions are more nutritious than most of
the vegetables in your garden. They were
named after lions because their lion-toothed
leaves healed so many ailments, great and
small. They have:
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Vitamin A - for good vision

Vitamin C - to keep you healthy and
help you heal

Iron – to deliver oxygen to your body
and give you energy

Calcium – for strong bones

Potassium –to help your heart beat
Fun Dandelion Facts
Dandelions are just plain fun.
Dandelions are masters of survival – they can grow
almost anywhere and are hard to get rid of.
Dandelions, at the grocery store, cost more than
steak and lobster.
The dandelion is the only flower that represents
the 3 celestial bodies of the sun, moon and stars.
The yellow flower resembles the sun, the puff ball
resembles the moon and the dispersing seeds
resemble the stars.
The dandelion flower opens to greet the morning
and closes in the evening to go to sleep.
Up until the 1800s people would pull grass out of
their lawns to make room for dandelions and
other useful “weeds” like chickweed.
Dandelions have one of the longest flowering
seasons of any plant.
Seeds are often carried as many as 5 miles from
their origin!
Dandelions are members of the daisy family.
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The dandelion seems to be the flower
earmarked for children: In park or
garden, it's the only flower a kid can
pick without getting into trouble.
A child in a field full of dandelions need
never run out of things to do: Blowing
on dandelion puffballs can tell you if
it's time to go home, how many years
until you get married, or how many
children you'll have – and of course, if
you catch a flying dandelion seed, you
can make a wish.
The Dandelion's pallid tube / Astonishes the
Grass, / And Winter instantly becomes / An
infinite Alas – // The tube uplifts a signal Bud /
And then a shouting Flower, -- / The
Proclamation of the Suns / That sepulture is o'er.
Emily Dickinson
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