Dandelions are an incredible gift from nature. What other plant is completely edible, self propagates with no intervention, brings up nutrients from deep in the soil for other plants, blooms beautiful flowers year round and provides endless entertainment for children?
The number of intractable societal problems that would suddenly become non-issues if the average household engaged in basic permaculture boggles the mind. It’s hard to think of a more apt metaphor for our ills than the fact that we actively apply cancer-causing poison to kill them as a matter of course.
The invention of broadleaf herbicides like 2,4-d (herbicides that kill broadleaf “weeds” but not grass) has been disastrous.
Now it’s expected you regularly spray chemicals on your lawn. Sometimes your neighbor can even use county, state, and city laws to compel you to do it.
I'm going to question the 'beautiful flowers' part of that. From an aesthetic point of view Dandelion flowers don't have a lot going for them. They're aggressively yellow and tend to visually dominate over other plants (and they're extremely efficient at propagating, so if you don't actively control them, they'll quickly become the majority flower) while they're blooming, and the blooms don't even last very long, sometimes less than 24 hours, and a dandelion head that's shed its seeds looks kind-of ugly.
I generally have a very light-touch approach to gardening, but even I draw the line at dandelions. The correct method of dealing with them is a trowel though, not weedkiller.
In addition to the good qualities you listed, they are also good indicators of compacted soil (plants with thick taproots tend to spring up in compacted soil).
They are technically invasive where I am (northeast US) but I have never seen them take over an area so much as to choke out native species. I would argue that they have become naturalized.
Though I agree that dandelions are awesome, your description of them also describes sow thistles perfectly. Not only are sow thistles often mistaken for dandelions (at least in their earlier growth stage), but they are woefully underrated as edible wild plants.
In fact, I appreciate sow thistle even more than dandelion. People assume they must be bitter or even poisonous because they have white sap and can look kind of ugly in their late stage of growth, but if you pick them when they're tender they aren't bitter at all. If a person wasn't aware they were eating a common weed, they might assume they were eating a gourmet green from the produce section. I've used it to substitute spinach for creamed spinach, and though it doesn't taste like spinach, it was very tasty. But I usually just pick and eat the greens raw!
Specifically, I am referring to the "sow thistle" that is of the genus Sonchus. It is not a true thistle, and I think that there's other plants called "sow thistle" that aren't this one.
I've never tried using the roots and don't know whether they have properties similar to dandelion. Dandelions may have a leg up in terms of the root, but I'm not sure. Sow thistle is otherwise highly nutritious.
As someone who's been foraging for over a decade, I find it crazy how most foragers completely overlook this plant despite how it's both common and tasty in contrast to many of the more sought-after plants.
Here is a good article on identifying sow thistle which also includes a recipe:
I'm an avid gardener and I love the environment but we have to realize the real numbers for how we feed ourselves. It would take about one acre of land to feed yourself on wheat in a year.
>An estimated value of 720 pounds of wheat is said to be consumed by a family of four yearly. 60 pounds of wheat can be got from a bushel.
Since a bushel of wheat can be grown on 0.25 acre of land, you’ll need 0.75 acres of land per person. You’ll need approximately 3 acres of land for growing wheat and grain yearly for a family of four.
Please stop with the "nature's bounty" rubbish, it's just soft thinking. Since you ask let's try carrots, beetroot, fat hen, strawberries (yes, leaves and stems are edible too), samphire etc. If you want to broaden out a bit, various fungi and seaweed.
For some reason our kindergarten teachers (in germany) told us that the plant is poisonous. That taught me very early to question authority figures like teachers, because the same day when I came home from kindergarten I found my grandfather sitting on his yard bench eating dandelion leaves.
Thinking about, they might have told us it is poisonous to keep us from playing with them, because the sap colours skin and clothes brown with hard to remove stains.
At least in the US, people routinely spray dandelions with weed killer. So an argument could be made in favor of telling kids - especially in a classroom setting - where you'd rather err on the side of keeping kids from picking dandelions from any yard they pass by, and eating them.
I had a similar experience with the anti-drug propaganda as a student. In the US there is (was?) an anti-drug program called DARE that as students in the 80s and 90s we were routinely subjected to. It was basically anti-drug propaganda. They went over all sorts of downsides/side effects of drugs (which are EVIL) including marijuana. The most terrifying "side effect" to most of us boys was the shrinking of your penis (yes seriously this was taught).
Once I learned the reality around "drugs" it was a startling lesson to me that you need to question authority figures, even though this at times can infuriate them. Now with teenagers of my own, hearing some of the things their teachers teach them as "fact" can be depressing, especially when it's tech-related and it's clear that the teacher has absolutely no idea what they're talking about.
That would never have flown in our (UK) class, where we grew up drinking Dandelion and Burdock pop
It was however playground lore that touching them and licking your fingers would make you wet the bed. Indeed the French name for them is literally that, pissenlit, which they must have had good reason to choose over the perfectly fine English name for them, dent de lion.
In particular, I did not realize that they were brought over by settlers. Likely on purpose as a food source/herb then spread with western expansion. Another thing I remember is that he says there are accounts in China of roots getting much longer. 10+ feet IIRC, compared to 2 claimed in this article. Although that's a bit hard to believe. I guess it is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Of course now they are just seen as a weed. I guess I have mixed feelings The yellow flowers themselves dont put me off but seeing large patches of them after going to seed dont look good. Unlike many here probably, I do like a pristine lawn but even still I don't think the flowers themselves are a pure eyesore.
God invents a beautiful little flower, a bright yellow reminder of the star which powers all life on our planet, which happens to be edible and tasty. When they go to seed, they turn into little puffballs that my kids pick and use to make their secret wishes. When my dog runs through the yard, she kicks up little clouds of seeds which float gently away on the breeze to spread more little flowers.
And humans are like, "fuck that, I just want grass. God forbid any little flowers should pop up on my lawn."
(disclaimer: I don't mean to shit all over your lawncare - I just find the impulse kind of funny. It's fine that you like a pristine lawn, to each their own).
> but seeing large patches of them after going to seed dont look good
This seems like the primary metric we as a society use for assessing plants as weed or desirable. I wonder if it is the right metric or whether we should start with the environmental impact (and what metrics would make this assessment, like impact to pollinators, etc).
> Another thing I remember is that he says there are accounts in China of roots getting much longer. 10+ feet IIRC, compared to 2 claimed in this article. Although that's a bit hard to believe.
Have you ever seen the lengths people go to for pumpkin competitions? I fully believe that people committed to the cause could grow 10' dandelion roots. Tons of fertilizer, optimized "sun" exposure, repeat for generations and propagate the seeds from the record-setters.
My father grew up fairly poor in the 1930s and they often were short on food but he said they always had vegetables. They harvested dandelions, ate them, and actually made dandelion wine (according to him).
He and his siblings loved vegetables as during certain times of the year they were the one thing they had "too much of". Everything else was basically rationed but they would get various peak harvests where they could eat until they were full.
Dandelion wine is delicious and not that hard to make. You just have to make sure you're harvesting dandelions that haven't been sprayed with a chemical. The final taste is mild but like a light mead and honey-ish.
I've been pulling dandelions from my yard so maybe I am sensitized to any news but lately I've seen a lot of stories on them:
Europeans brought them over to the New World they were a common food source and used for medicine.
Dandelion comes from Lion's Tooth in French due to the look do the fine pointed flower leaves.
They are seen as a nuisance now since lawns were once only for the very rich. You had land you needed to grow all your food on it.
A local biologist said "no mow May" is nonsense bees should be using wildflowers not dandelions. To bees dandelions are like junk food the pollen is poor quality.
Dandelions do not need to pollinate seeds are ready to go that's why they are so numerous.
All parts of a dandelion edible young leaves taste good but old are bitter, such is life.
I made a dandelion petal gin and a whole dandelion tincture last week, and both were a big hit at a cocktail party. I also sprinkle the petals and greens on my salads for a boost of nutrition, flavor and color.
My favorite cocktail with the gin/tincture is a Bees' Knees but substituting lime and agave for the lemon and honey. I call it a Dandy Lion!
Dandelion root coffee is good enough that I buy it on a regular basis. I'm very much into real coffee and I make espresso at home, but I like dandelion root coffee in the evening when I don't want more caffeine.
It doesn't taste like coffee, but it tastes good, and it's close enough in flavor to scratch the itch. Much better than carob or chicory. (Although chicory mixed in with coffee à la Café du Monde is great.)
For anyone interested in incorporating wild plants into their cuisine (including foraging, preparation, storage, recipes, etc.), I cannot recommend Samuel Thayer's books highly enough: https://www.foragersharvest.com/sams-books.html
At this point, he is an authority in the foraging community, and his books are well-written. Got all of them in my bookshelf.
Dandelions.
I hate them, ugly and naughty.
If you do not pay attention, they grow over your head.
I rot them out, boil them alive into a soup, along with the goutweed, nettles, parsley and chives.
Now and then I also mix this ineradicable brood into a pesto.
And eat it.
Never show weakness to weeds.
That's interesting, since Dandelions are wild plants. Basically every vegetable or fruit we eat today (carrots would be pretty close I guess) are cultivated. Usually they hardly resemble their wild ancestor.
I'm surprised Dandelions didn't get cultivated to have much larger roots.
Just remember when foraging for wild edibles (including dandelions) to avoid areas that have been treated with pesticides, or where dogs may have peed. Avoid golf courses and train tracks and old farms.
Dandelions are pretty prolific but I would also be mindful of abundance when foraging other plants. If there is only one or a few of them around, don't take it. There's a 1-in-20 rule for this.
There are a ton of books, YouTube videos, and probably some in person classes in your area on this stuff.
Weeds with such an impressive root system need a different approach than just mowing, but many are unaware of this.
My city's landscaping services are fighting a losing battle with a local patch of Asian knotweed. Mowing it down doesn't do much because it just grows back and spreads.
Had some dandelion leaves in salad yesterday. I have added the roots to a batch of fermented cabbage (etc- at times it's more like kimchi, especially if I add fish sauce and peppers, other times sauerkraut).
Χόρτα[0] is a common dish in Greece. I recommend giving it a try with dandelion. My great-grandmother used to stop alongside the country road with a little sickle and cut various greens for cooking down later.
The most interesting thing I discovered about Dandelion roots is that earth worms appear to nurse off them. Whenever I dig up a big Dandelion root, I also find a large earth worm. Earth worms also like cows milk.
It's also possible to make dandelion flower tea, if you have a bunch of these plants around maybe it's worth trying it out on the weekend. It seems a bit lower effort than digging up the whole root.
[+] [-] tspike|2 years ago|reply
The number of intractable societal problems that would suddenly become non-issues if the average household engaged in basic permaculture boggles the mind. It’s hard to think of a more apt metaphor for our ills than the fact that we actively apply cancer-causing poison to kill them as a matter of course.
[+] [-] ed25519FUUU|2 years ago|reply
Now it’s expected you regularly spray chemicals on your lawn. Sometimes your neighbor can even use county, state, and city laws to compel you to do it.
[+] [-] YurgenJurgensen|2 years ago|reply
I generally have a very light-touch approach to gardening, but even I draw the line at dandelions. The correct method of dealing with them is a trowel though, not weedkiller.
[+] [-] pneumic|2 years ago|reply
They are technically invasive where I am (northeast US) but I have never seen them take over an area so much as to choke out native species. I would argue that they have become naturalized.
[+] [-] ravenstine|2 years ago|reply
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonchus
In fact, I appreciate sow thistle even more than dandelion. People assume they must be bitter or even poisonous because they have white sap and can look kind of ugly in their late stage of growth, but if you pick them when they're tender they aren't bitter at all. If a person wasn't aware they were eating a common weed, they might assume they were eating a gourmet green from the produce section. I've used it to substitute spinach for creamed spinach, and though it doesn't taste like spinach, it was very tasty. But I usually just pick and eat the greens raw!
Specifically, I am referring to the "sow thistle" that is of the genus Sonchus. It is not a true thistle, and I think that there's other plants called "sow thistle" that aren't this one.
I've never tried using the roots and don't know whether they have properties similar to dandelion. Dandelions may have a leg up in terms of the root, but I'm not sure. Sow thistle is otherwise highly nutritious.
As someone who's been foraging for over a decade, I find it crazy how most foragers completely overlook this plant despite how it's both common and tasty in contrast to many of the more sought-after plants.
Here is a good article on identifying sow thistle which also includes a recipe:
https://www.eattheweeds.com/sonchus-sow-thistle-in-a-pigs-ey...
EDIT: And here's a video by the same author of that article:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWQ4nGraAdI
[+] [-] Mistletoe|2 years ago|reply
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2022/7/15/23218969/sri-la...
I'm an avid gardener and I love the environment but we have to realize the real numbers for how we feed ourselves. It would take about one acre of land to feed yourself on wheat in a year.
>An estimated value of 720 pounds of wheat is said to be consumed by a family of four yearly. 60 pounds of wheat can be got from a bushel. Since a bushel of wheat can be grown on 0.25 acre of land, you’ll need 0.75 acres of land per person. You’ll need approximately 3 acres of land for growing wheat and grain yearly for a family of four.
https://permaculturism.com/how-much-land-does-it-take-to-fee...
[+] [-] zwieback|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] _a_a_a_|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] RobotToaster|2 years ago|reply
While it is edible, it should be noted the leaves are a good diuretic, which may be an undesirable effect for some.
[+] [-] ngvrnd|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] omnibrain|2 years ago|reply
Thinking about, they might have told us it is poisonous to keep us from playing with them, because the sap colours skin and clothes brown with hard to remove stains.
[+] [-] garettmd|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] freedomben|2 years ago|reply
Once I learned the reality around "drugs" it was a startling lesson to me that you need to question authority figures, even though this at times can infuriate them. Now with teenagers of my own, hearing some of the things their teachers teach them as "fact" can be depressing, especially when it's tech-related and it's clear that the teacher has absolutely no idea what they're talking about.
[+] [-] pwndByDeath|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rwmj|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] schwartzworld|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] hanoz|2 years ago|reply
It was however playground lore that touching them and licking your fingers would make you wet the bed. Indeed the French name for them is literally that, pissenlit, which they must have had good reason to choose over the perfectly fine English name for them, dent de lion.
[+] [-] nonethewiser|2 years ago|reply
I found this video on their history interesting.
Dandelions and Civilization: A Forgotten History: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyePMeGE3CI
In particular, I did not realize that they were brought over by settlers. Likely on purpose as a food source/herb then spread with western expansion. Another thing I remember is that he says there are accounts in China of roots getting much longer. 10+ feet IIRC, compared to 2 claimed in this article. Although that's a bit hard to believe. I guess it is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Of course now they are just seen as a weed. I guess I have mixed feelings The yellow flowers themselves dont put me off but seeing large patches of them after going to seed dont look good. Unlike many here probably, I do like a pristine lawn but even still I don't think the flowers themselves are a pure eyesore.
[+] [-] epiccoleman|2 years ago|reply
And humans are like, "fuck that, I just want grass. God forbid any little flowers should pop up on my lawn."
(disclaimer: I don't mean to shit all over your lawncare - I just find the impulse kind of funny. It's fine that you like a pristine lawn, to each their own).
[+] [-] voisin|2 years ago|reply
This seems like the primary metric we as a society use for assessing plants as weed or desirable. I wonder if it is the right metric or whether we should start with the environmental impact (and what metrics would make this assessment, like impact to pollinators, etc).
[+] [-] klyrs|2 years ago|reply
Have you ever seen the lengths people go to for pumpkin competitions? I fully believe that people committed to the cause could grow 10' dandelion roots. Tons of fertilizer, optimized "sun" exposure, repeat for generations and propagate the seeds from the record-setters.
[+] [-] Alex3917|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zikzak|2 years ago|reply
He and his siblings loved vegetables as during certain times of the year they were the one thing they had "too much of". Everything else was basically rationed but they would get various peak harvests where they could eat until they were full.
[+] [-] beezlebroxxxxxx|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rwmj|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] dghughes|2 years ago|reply
Europeans brought them over to the New World they were a common food source and used for medicine.
Dandelion comes from Lion's Tooth in French due to the look do the fine pointed flower leaves.
They are seen as a nuisance now since lawns were once only for the very rich. You had land you needed to grow all your food on it.
A local biologist said "no mow May" is nonsense bees should be using wildflowers not dandelions. To bees dandelions are like junk food the pollen is poor quality.
Dandelions do not need to pollinate seeds are ready to go that's why they are so numerous.
All parts of a dandelion edible young leaves taste good but old are bitter, such is life.
[+] [-] solarist|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|2 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] dagejo|2 years ago|reply
I'd prefer the name 'dent-de-lion'
[+] [-] throwawaaarrgh|2 years ago|reply
My favorite cocktail with the gin/tincture is a Bees' Knees but substituting lime and agave for the lemon and honey. I call it a Dandy Lion!
[+] [-] mcdonje|2 years ago|reply
It doesn't taste like coffee, but it tastes good, and it's close enough in flavor to scratch the itch. Much better than carob or chicory. (Although chicory mixed in with coffee à la Café du Monde is great.)
[+] [-] hosh|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] itomato|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] slazien|2 years ago|reply
At this point, he is an authority in the foraging community, and his books are well-written. Got all of them in my bookshelf.
[+] [-] galleywest200|2 years ago|reply
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pissenlit
[+] [-] Borrible|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cubefox|2 years ago|reply
I'm surprised Dandelions didn't get cultivated to have much larger roots.
[+] [-] themanmaran|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bearmode|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] BrianB|2 years ago|reply
Dandelions are pretty prolific but I would also be mindful of abundance when foraging other plants. If there is only one or a few of them around, don't take it. There's a 1-in-20 rule for this.
There are a ton of books, YouTube videos, and probably some in person classes in your area on this stuff.
[+] [-] Tade0|2 years ago|reply
My city's landscaping services are fighting a losing battle with a local patch of Asian knotweed. Mowing it down doesn't do much because it just grows back and spreads.
[+] [-] meristohm|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pwpw|2 years ago|reply
[0] https://greekcitytimes.com/2021/11/05/greek-leafy-greens-goo...
[+] [-] nerpderp82|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] TheAceOfHearts|2 years ago|reply
[+] [-] manicennui|2 years ago|reply
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyePMeGE3CI