I mowed the other day but my yard is still full of them, those pretty yellow flowers which bloom every spring and early summer.
Even though they're kind of pretty, most people don't like dandelions all that much. I guess it's because they tend to take over a lawn and keep the grass from growing into one spotless green carpet.
And so, people spend a fortune on chemicals and sprays to kill them off; and some even spend hours digging them out. Of course, others of us who seem to be in the business of raising them aren't too popular with the neighbors who regard them as a cursed noxious weed to be destroyed at all costs.
I still remember when I was a kid. My father was a teacher and school principal who sometimes sentenced misbehaved boys to digging dandelions during their recess time. I know he wouldn't get away with that today -- too cruel and unusual -- but he gave them each a dandelion digger and a five gallon bucket and told them that they had to dig two hundred dandelions each before they could resume normal recess activities. Hey, it worked and was a deterrent to the rest of us who had better things to do during recess time.
And, just in case you're wondering, I dug my share of dandelions too, but it wasn't a school punishment! My mother wasn't too fond of them in our yard and sent me out with a bucket and dandelion digger to get them cut off at the roots. Now I don't think I would or could stoop quite so low as to dig dandelions with a hand digger and bucket. I just let them grow.
It's kind of sad to see people hate dandelions so much. Leontodon taraxacum are in the daisy family and they add so much color to my yard. Those puff balls are such fun for the kids and grandkids, too, unless they make the mistake of inhaling when too close and preparing to blow and spread seeds all over the neighborhood for next year. And, besides the flowers' aesthetic value, the plants are green, which is more than you can say for many of the other plants growing in my yard.
You may not know this, but dandelions have a medicinal value too, which is all the more reason not to uproot them. I'm not talking about dandelion wine -- another reason some folks might want to raise a big crop of them -- I'm talking about their value as a wart remover. Yep, if you get a wart, you can just pick a yellow dandelion flower (I don't think the white puff balls will work) and squeeze a little of the white, milky substance from the stem onto your wart, repeat this several times over the next few days, and that wart will turn brown, dry up and wither away.
Does this sound unbelievable? Well, I had my doubts too; but I've tried it several times, and it has worked without fail. It's a lot cheaper than going to the doctor or to the drug store and getting medicine. The only drawback is waiting until spring if a wart happens to pop up in late fall.
I haven't tried it yet, but I've been thinking of freezing some dandelion flowers and stems for just such cases. That way I won't have to wait all winter long for springtime to come and those beautiful yellow flowers to bloom again.
And there are other uses too. Some folks eat the greens, and others use the roots for medicinal purposes. I've read that they have many benefits and have been used for their nutritional value, diuresis, regulation of blood glucose, liver and gall bladder disorders, appetite stimulation and for dyspeptic complaints. Looks like I have more research to do! I just don't know if I want to stoop low enough to harvest the plants or their roots.
But if my neighbors complain, I'll have to come up with a good reason to let them grow. I suppose I could argue an exemption from eradication if they are for medical use.
Randy Moll is the managing editor of the Westside Eagle Observer. He may be contacted by email at [email protected]. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 04/15/2015