I'm pondering dandelions

[Rorey]

I've got a LOT of dandelions in my backyard. I decided to try to get them under control a few days ago, and took my weed-puller-upper -thingie out and pulled out many, but this morning there seems to be twice as many. So I went out with my weed-puller-upper-thingie again. I pulled quite a few, and then thought I might try my weed burner for a bit. While I was doing all of this, I battled with myself about whether to do anything at all. I definitely don't want to hurt bees and birds and such. I'm not a fan of poisoning things if I can possibly avoid it. Nobody can really see my backyard, so it shouldn't offend anyone.

One of my neighbors has even more dandelions than I do, and hers are in her front yard where another very picky neighbor has full view. I'm sure the complaining will start soon from the picky neighbor toward the one who cares more about not killing things than about having a perfect-looking yard. My attitude is that we should all just worry about our own yards and respect the right of others to make their own decisions about their landscaping.

Anyway, I welcome anyone's suggestions or input about the dandelions.

[tblue37]

1. Leave the dandelions. Take the cannoli.

Last edited Mon May 8, 2023, 03:11 PM - Edit history (1)

I love dandelions.

[Rorey]

2. I'd really be in trouble if cannolis grew in my backyard!

[tblue37]

3. Are you kidding? Yours would be the most popular yard on the block!

[Rorey]

4. That's true

I'd definitely have to move.

[niyad]

5. Fascinating timing. I just finished watching a short video, "Dandelions and

Civilization"A Forgotten History", by "The History Guy". Most informative and interesting. They are amazing, and so very useful. And beautiful.

Did you know that chicory and radiccio are part of the same family?

[Rorey]

7. Front lawns

I'm definitely not a fan of putting a lot of resources into front lawns. Mine is just a little wedge because I live on a circle. My backyard is pretty large, which isn't really a good thing at this point of my life. I don't mind mowing because it's good exercise, but I do mind watering because it just seems stupid and careless to waste such a valuable resource on something that's basically just there to look at.

According to that film (thank you), I could be eating those dandelions. Maybe I'll give them a try.

[niyad]

18. You are most welcome. Dandeliin greens are delicious, and the petals

Last edited Mon May 8, 2023, 06:18 PM - Edit history (1)

scattered atop a salad are so pretty.

Are you watering in the evening? Much less evaporation that way. We definitely do not have to worry about root rot in our desert climate!

[CrispyQ]

6. I read that they are actually good for the soil & if you leave them,

over a few years they will disappear. We only have them in areas of our yard where not much grows & since I read that a few years ago, we don't have nearly as many as we used to. So, maybe it's true?

I also read that bees & other insects & organisms live under yard waste—leaves, clumps of grass, things like that—so not to rake until after May 15. ??? IDK about that one, but I pushed back my raking schedule anyway.

[Rorey]

8. Raking

I started raking about a month ago, but I imagine that date for starting raking is different depending on where one lives. I'm in Pueblo, Colorado, so maybe it's earlier here.

[CrispyQ]

11. I probably read that on FB.

We don't do anything with our yard, plant a garden or anything, so I'm happy to wait another month. I'm in Boulder county so you're probably a little warmer & drier than me.

[jcgoldie]

9. I picked 3 gallons last week

And have some dandelion wine in primary fermentation right now.

Easy recipe: cut off the green parts (a little labor intensive), toss the yellow in a 5 gallon bucket with about 5 or 6 diced up oranges and lemons (including skins)… add about 12 lbs of sugar (for 16% alcohol.. use less if you don’t want this strength), fill with water… 5 or 6 campden tabs (to sterilize)… wait a day and add champagne yeast. Put a top on it with an airlock and let it bubble for a few week! Delicious 😋

[CrispyQ]

10. Lemons & oranges, wow, I would love to try that!

It must be a lovely shade of yellow.

[jcgoldie]

12. Hopefully

Right now its kind of a mess because those flowers fall apart when you cut off the green part and they look like spaghetti. In another week or so will run it through a cloth bag to filter everything out and rack it into a carboy jar.

[Rorey]

23. I may just try that

I don't really drink, but I could share it with others. Thanks!

[Niagara]

13. Please ponder this information, Rorey.

If there are maple trees in your area, the bee's might be working on that instead. I have clover in my yard that I refuse to address since the bee's are extremely busy with that in the summer.


https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/nextdoor/dandelions-are-not-weeds-instead-they-are-a-honey-bee-s-first-source-of-pollen-in-the-spring/ar-NDACGSWwgz9XG



Additional info: Birds land on dandelions and eat the bugs and utilize the petals for nests.



Save the Bee's.

[jcgoldie]

14. I can verify

Have 25 hives and the dandelions and white clover are some of their favorite forage in late spring and early summer.

[Niagara]

15. Thank you for verifying, jcgoldie!

[Rorey]

17. You've convinced me

I will leave them alone, which is really what I wanted to do anyway.

[niyad]

19. And now you have sound, scientific, botanical expertise to back you up!

[Rorey]

21. True

Somehow I don't think my picky neighbor - the one who complains about others - would appreciate it if I told her any of that. We used to talk a lot, but her complaining about my other neighbor started to get old. My neighbor with the dandelions in her front yard has lived here for over 15 years, and the picky neighbor acts like she doesn't know her name. It's ridiculous.

[cksmithy]

16. I pull them out of the front yard

with a tool that gets to the long skinny root out which inhibits regrowth. (If a neighbor has dandelions you will always have dandelions.) The tool works pretty good, but when we went to the UK, back in spring 2010, most of all lawns, parks, homes, etc, were covered in dandelions. It was shocking at first, but the yellow spots of color was quite pretty, when I got used to it. We don't use any sort of pesticides because we have lost of birds, squirrels, critters, bees, good insects, birds of prey for the mice and rats, we don't want to hurt any of them. We have a small front lawn and have over planted the grass with clover. It is very green and a few sprouts of clover taller than the grass, we love how it looks. Also, I understand people actually eat dandelion greens, just not the stems. I've never eaten them.

[niyad]

20. You treat the leaves as you would arugula or radiccio (and, incidentally,

dandelion, radiccio and chicory are all related). The petals go into salad, or wine. Dried roots for gastric or intestinal problems. A real powerhouse.

[Rorey]

22. I got one of those "Grandpa's Weeder" things

Once I got the hang of it, it works pretty good.

I have a real hard time letting myself use any type of pesticide too. If I feel like it's absolutely necessary, I use diatomaceous earth.