Dandelion

Dandelion is in the Asteraceae (daisy) family and the genus Taraxacum officinale

The Asteraceae or Daisy family, is one of the largest plant families and includes the daisy, marigold, sunflower, calendula, lettuce, artichoke and many more.

The common dandelion is native to the Mediterranean and spread to all of Eurasia and then on to every continent except Antarctica

Lesser populated varieties of dandelion are native to other parts of the world like the Horned Dandelion of North America

Long taproot used to bring up nutrients for other plants

Leaves – grow in a rosette at the bottom of the stem. Large indents (like lion’s teeth)

Stem – hollow, usually has white liquid (lactucarium) inside

Flowers – hundreds of (usually yellow) ray-shaped flowers clustered into a head

Dandelion first appears in the earliest known medical book, a Chinese text called the Tang Bencao (materia medica) from 659 B.C.E.Texts from Arabian physicians in the 10th century show early uses Dandelion to treat to treat liver disease and digestion

It’s name comes from the French, ‘Dent de Lion’ – for the ‘tooth of a lion’ referring to the toothed leaves

It was used to make yellow and purple colored dye (from the flower and stem) since the Middle Ages

Dandelion was brought here to Turtle Island by colonists on the Mayflower. Dandelion was valuable because it grows plentifully for foraging, follows human use, and fills disturbed land without damaging native species. It was quickly adopted by Native groups who used it for a variety of health issues including stomach, kidney, and skin problems

Dandelion was loved and valued back when yards were filled with gardens and plants instead of grass

In the mid-1800s it became popular amongst the wealthy to have a grass lawn like the upper class in Europe, and quickly dandelions became unseemly

In Michael Ruhlman’s book, House: A Memoir, he talks about how in the early days of Shaker Heights (a Cleveland suburb) the Italian women were considered a nuisance because they would come up the hill and sit on the lawns of the rich folks to pick dandelion greens and breastfeed their babies.

My great-grandfather loved dandelion greens and when I pass those big houses and see a spot of yellow on their lawn I like to think that maybe my grandmothers were there in another lifetime

All parts (blooms, buds, stem, leaves, and root) of dandelions are edible and can be used a food and medicine. (I’ve been hoping this pink dandelion would show itself for dandelion month and it finally bloomed just a couple days ago!)

Dandelion has many medicinal properties but is best known to aid the liver and kidney as a blood purifier. It’s also excellent for the digestive system.

Dandelion has drying and cooling energetics (so it’s good to use if you have excess phlegm or when your body is running warm)

Dandelion helps with arthritis, constipation, detox, gallbladder, heartburn, kidney, liver, rheumatic pain, stomach and digestion

It works as an alterative, anti-lithic, bitters, carminative, diuretic, laxative, stimulant and tonic

Masculine energy, ruled by Jupiter (focus on material needs), air element. Used for Divination, wishes, and thinning the veil. Dandelion is also known as a harbinger of spring, and symbols of youth, resilience, hope, and overcoming adversity

Represents the three celestial bodies, Sun, Moon, and Stars

In Japan they are called tanpopo and represent courage because of their ability grow anywhere

In Greek myth Theseus, the warrior-father of Athens, received the strength to defeat the mighty minotaur after the goddess of magic, Hecate, fed him dandelions for 30 days

Theseus and the Minotaur by Edward Burne-Jones (1861)

In an Ojibway story, the South Wind falls in love with Dandelion but leaves her to nourish the pollinators during the summer. When he returns Dandelion has grown old and he blows her seeds out onto the meadow for yellow heads to pop up the next year

The seeds of a dandelion are believed to carry your thoughts and dreams to loved ones when you blow them into the air.

Find a good puffball and take a moment to calm and concentrate and then blow your wishes to be carried off to them.