Dandelions are perennial, herbaceous plants that grow best in moist, sunny areas found in all parts of the northern temperate zone. The plant grows year round but goes dormant in areas that experience a cold winter.

Dandelion Care

• Light. Dandelion plants prefer a spot in full sunlight, but can happily grow in just about any light conditions.
• Soil. If there’s one thing dandelions aren’t particular about, it’s their soil mixture.
• Water.
• Fertilizer.

Dandelion plants indoors need several hours of bright sunlight. You may need to supplement natural light with a grow light or fluorescent tubes. Leave the container under the lights for 14 to 16 hours per day (a timer will help). Water the potting mix regularly to keep it moist, but never saturated.

A perennial with a stout taproot, dandelion is abundant everywhere but prefers chalks and loamy soils above pH 7.0. It has been found in prehistoric deposits, and is recorded up to 2,700 ft in Britain. Dandelion is common in pastures, lawns, orchards, hay fields, waste ground and roadsides.

Horticultural vinegar which is used to kill weeds is 20% acetic acid. That’s a very strong acid and can cause significant injury to you. Household vinegar is not strong enough to kill dandelions. Household vinegar is only 5% acetic acid.

A broadleaf herbicide is good for killing dandelions in lawns, as the herbicide will kill the dandelions and not the grass. The other kind of effective dandelion herbicide is a non-selective herbicide. Non-selective means that the herbicide will kill any plant that it comes in contact with.

How to Prevent Dandelions

1. Mow High. Tall grass chokes out weeds, so cut your lawn at a higher mower setting and adhere to a strict feeding schedule to keep your grass tall and thick.
2. Leave Clippings.
3. Administer a Pre-Emergent Herbicide.
4. Improve Soil Conditions.
5. Avoid Hand Pulling.
6. Want to Prevent Dandelions?

1. STEP 1: Dig up the dandelions.
2. STEP 2: Carefully target and kill the dandelion root with herbicide.
3. STEP 3: Fill the hole in your lawn with a pre-emergent herbicide and soil.
4. STEP 4: Focus on your lawn’s health.

They are difficult to completely eliminate, and the entire plant (root and all) of the dandelion needs to be removed or they can grow right back. To rid your lawn of dandelions, use a product such as Scotts® Weed B Gon® MAX. Apply it to the dandelions to kill them without harming the lawn.

Dandelion leaves poisoning However, we should consider that dandelion leaves, which can be eaten as a vegetable, are rich in oxalates so, taken in large quantity, can cause damage to the body. Poisoning have also been reported in children from eating dandelion stems. These stalks contain much latex.