How did THAT get into my lawn: Dandelion

Up until the early 1800’s, people would pull grass out of their lawns in order to make room for dandelions and other “useful” weeds. However, times have changed and this bright yellow pest is a consistent problem to homeowners everywhere.

Controlling Dandelions

Dandelions have one of the longest flowering seasons of any plant.

A little about Dandelions – Dandelions are a perennial weed that we battle every season. They have a long tap root that keeps these plants alive even after harsh weather. These persistent weeds have the ability to adapt to almost every soil type with immense ease making no lawn safe. The bright yellow flower of a dandelion opens and closes with the sun each day until it matures into a seed head and is one of the biggest issues in lawn care from very early spring to fall.

Dandelion seed heads

How did THAT get into my lawn? – Once solely restricted to Europe, dandelions have proven just how resilient and adaptable they truly are. Settlers brought this plant over for medicinal and culinary uses have become homeowner’s worst nightmare when it comes to lawn maintenance. Wind is the biggest factor in how dandelions infest your lawn. At times, a strong wind has carried dandelion seeds as far as 5 miles from its parent plant. Other methods of travel include rain runoff and sticking to clothing and animal fur. As the plant matures, their bright yellow flower turns into a puff ball of seeds just waiting to release. Each seed is attached to what looks like a little white parachute making travel easy.

What can I do? – Dandelions are extremely difficult to remove due to their long tap root. Pulling and insufficient digging can lead to a bigger problem as they often leave parts of this root behind, allowing a new weed to form. Using a selective broadleaf weed control is the best path for permanent dandelion removal. Green Lawn’s weed control will effectively kill both the visible plant and seep to the root for complete elimination. Remember: all it takes is leaving a fraction of the root behind to make your dandelion problem go from bad to worse! Our application will take care of active dandelions fairly quickly. While the flower is yellow and open, weed control is able to be “taken in” by the plant and distributed for complete removal. Promoting good lawn health will help keep these pesky weeds at bay when managed properly with consistent weed control and fertilizer at the proper times throughout the entire season.