Taraxacum officinale

The Sun at Your Feet

Catch the flash of yellow across a lawn or open trail—too bright to ignore, too common to always notice.

🌐 WHERE

Lawns, cracks in pavement, disturbed ground, fields—anywhere the soil is slightly open to light.

⌚ WHEN

Earliest blooms can appear in March or April; can persist through fall with rain and mowing.

🌿 ENGAGE 🌿

Trace the jagged “lion’s tooth” shape of a leaf.
Let your fingers follow one full petal spiral (if in seed, follow the puffball structure instead).
Tug gently—notice how the milky sap rises at a break.
Observe the angle of the flower’s head—is it open to sun or closing with shadow?
Blow a single seedhead and track a seed’s floating direction.

🌿 CONNECT 🌿

Every part is edible and medicinal: root, leaf, flower.
Provides critical nectar for early spring pollinators.
Deep taproot helps aerate soil and bring minerals to the surface – and is also one of the world’s best coffee substitutes!
Seeds are carried by wind—and wishmakers.
Naturalized almost worldwide; a symbol of persistence and return.

🌿 TRY THIS: 🌿

Sketch the bud, flower, and seedhead stages side-by-side.
Reflect: what memories or meanings has dandelion had in your life?
Photograph its full cycle from bud to seed in one place.
Bonus: Try “Dandelion Time-lapse” – revisit the same flower for three days in a row. Or keep a dandelion calendar with camera and notepad (or digital notekeeper): note when you see the first bloom appear, take photos of dandelion fields at their peak… and try to find a two-or three-headed dandelion (I’ve got a three-headed one myself that I saved!).

🌿🤗 Fran's Notes 🤗 🌿

Besides burdock root (which I only harvest in fall and only very limitedly), dandelion leaf is my top herb for my personal liver support tea. When I lived in Texas, I was amazed that there were dandelions in the yard all winter – but almost never in the heat of summer! Currently living in Michigan, I see dandelions blooming straight through from March/April to October/November — and with quite a bit of variety! Some leaves are deeply indented (dente-de-lion or lion’s tooth) but some are much less so – closer to lobed than toothed! And size of leaf varies wildly, even in one yard – leaves ranging from four inches to almost a foot long! Finally, there are the occasional multi-headed dandelions and clusters or root bases that I hear make excellent eating… and then you have entire books written on the species, claiming all sorts of uses that I still do not yet know… Wow! There is a LOT to learn and know about this underappreciated wildflower! :/wink: