Dandelions!

[GAM]

Is it the year of the "Dandelion"?
I have a field this year absolutely covered in dandelions, never had any for the past 5 years!

 

[Mickeydredd]

Must be, loads of them around here in the garden and fields this year

 

[Steevo]

There do seem a lot more around than in previous years here too.

 

[Av Gorritt]

Strangely , I notice a band no more than 2 ft. wide along the edges of the motorway that's just a mass of dandelions , with very few if any further out . I wonder if that's the bit they mow regularly and so the "clock" seeds can more easily establish ?

 

[Bald Rick]

Should rename them now after Brexit

 

[DeeGee]

I think this must be ‘The Year of the Dandelions’.

I have some truly magnificent crops here despite the inclement weather; but possibly aided by the lack of competition from grass which seems most reluctant to compete with the dandies.

In fact I would say that I probably have the best crop of dandelions in the UK, were it not for the fact that it would undoubtedly trigger a plethora of counter claims, along with irrefutable photographic evidence supplied from all areas of this green and yellow septic isle, proving that my crops are not even in the top twenty, thousand, in the country.

So, let us just say that with the mowers now moving into the more forward crops, early indications are that my dandelions look like yielding a rather disappointing fifty thousand heads per hectare.

 

[Princess Pooper]

Good (yes, we have loads too) - the pollinators need something with nectar to replace the OSR that would normally have been flowering in May. Massive drop in OSR acreage round here due to flea beetle.

 

[Danllan]

Pray tell, what are these 'dandelions' you all write of?

 

[ColinV6]

Was just having this conversation yesterday. There’s loads round here too. Something we hardly see in a grass field usually.

 

[davidroberts30]

Same here
I put it down due to the colder dryer weather holding back the grass and the deeper rooted dandy getting away

 

[Wombat]

We have bloody loads in one field that had none in last year

 

[Sid]

Deep tap root bringing up lots of minerals

 

[Davey]

I must confess to having topped the field in front of the house last night as I'm so sick of seeing them

 

[Steevo]

I must confess to having topped the field in front of the house last night as I'm so sick of seeing them

They'll be back!

 

[PSQ]

The Goldfinches are hammering them here.

 

[haymaker80]

Loads here too. Saw this little article on Facebook a couple of weeks ago.....

“Hello, I'm a dandelion. A lot of people call me a weed but I'm a friend and come to help you! . When you see me, remember that I'm the ONLY one who wants and can grow in that particular spot. Because: . Either the soil is too compact / hard / stomped and I want to loosen it for you with my roots. . Or there is too little calcium in the soil - don't worry, I will replenish that for you with the dying of my leaves. . Or the soil is too acidic. But I will also improve that for you if you give me the chance. Or a mixture of the above reasons, of course. . I'm here because your soil needs my help so best you let me grow without disturbing me! When everything is fixed, I will disappear again, I promise! . Are you trying to remove me prematurely with my root? However meticulous you are, I will return 2x as strong! Just until your soil is improved. . You can even tell by my growth at which stage my help is at. If my leaves are flat on the ground then I'm far from ready but if they all reach up then I'm already a long way on my way. . Something completely different is that I am 1 of the first bloomers in spring so I will announce spring / summer for you. . During the day when it's hot, I open my flowers but in the evening when it cools off I close them again quickly. In fact, if it's not hot enough during the day I won't open them at all! . My flowers are the first food for insects after hibernation and unlike most other plants, I have pollen AND nectar, not merely one OR the other! And I am generous with them! . My flowers are even delicious for you people by the way, did you know? I used to be called ′′honey (or gold) of the poor′′ because my flowers are so sweet in e.g. jam, sauce or salad! The internet is full of recipes - check them out. But wait until the end of May or later before you start picking and even then, don't pick everything yet! The biodiversity and bees will be very grateful!” (Paula Kok - De Boer)

 

[GeorgeK]

It's nature providing, the cold has held up a lot of other flowers so the dandelions have stepped in. I like seeing the goldfinches on them too, they provide more than just nectar.

 

[jondear]

You see little piles of their seeds around the hedges .Not sure if it's birds or mice .

 

[Davey]

They'll be back!

Its only a little couple of acre paddock and they've long since been cleared out by the birds, just bloody stems everywhere.

 

[choochter]

There many more here this year too. I don't mind them. We used to have an old Highland pony who loved them.
We'd be sauntering along and she would side step, scoff a dandelion and walk on before I even had a chance to gather up the reins .