The dandelion is one of our most familiar wild plants, it is extremely invasive and generally thought of as a weed and pest. It is perennial and can grow up to thirty centimeters high, it has a rosette of ragged spear shaped leaves at its base.
Dandelion flowers from March to November, the flowers are bright yellow and grow on a hollow stem, these flowers are followed by the seed head or 'dandelion clock' as its known to children.
You can find dandelion herb in mostly any habitat, in lawns, borders, hedgerows, parks, fields, meadows, grasslands, forests, wasteland, bordering streams, dykes and lakes, on cliff tops and between paving slabs.
How To Gather And Store Dandelion
Gather the young leaves in the spring and use fresh, or dry for remedies, and store in an air tight jar for future use.
Gather Dandelion flowers when ever they are in bloom, these can be dried and used later on in the year, or better still, pick and use fresh. Dandelion blooms from spring to November, so they are easy to find most of the year round. The flowers and leaves will keep for about a week in the fridge or cool kitchen, if the stems are cut and placed in water.
Dandelion Benefits
Dandelion Benefits:Wine was made from the florets of dandelion and it is a component of the unique tasting soft drink called Dandelion and Burdock, it also has its uses as a salad veg and was used widely since medieval times in this way - try picking some young tender leaves and adding to a salad.
Dandelion has also been used medicinally for hundreds of years in this country, perhaps best known for its diuretic properties it's known as 'wet the bed' in England and France.
Dandelion is useful in helping to combat cellulite and water retention. The leaves are a good source of beta-carotene, vitamins A and C and contain one and a half times the amount of iron found in spinach.
Dandelion flowers are said to be a good remedy against anger and rage, I have tested this out and it seems to work. My partner used to come home in a rage and literally rant for an hour about his day, before he calmed down. I got sick of listening to rants and made him dandelion flower tea. just as an experiment really. I gave it to him every evening for a week and I can honestly say that he has not been ranting like that since.
Organic Dandelion Leaf For Natural Plant Remedies
Dandelion Remedies
Revitalising Dandelion Tea: Add one teaspoon of chopped dried or fresh dandelion leaves in a cup, cover with boiling water and leave to infuse for five minutes, strain and add honey or lemon to taste.
Rage Calming Dandelion Flower Tea: Add 3 whole dandelion flowers to a cup, pour on boiling water and steep for 5 mins, squeeze out the flower heads and discard. Add honey and lemon to taste or - Make a normal cup of black or green tea, take 3 dandelion flowers and place them in the tea, cover and leave for 5 mins, take the flowers out and squeeze all of the juice out of them into the tea. Discard the flowers. Milk can be added to the black tea version, or you could add honey or lemon etc to taste.
Dandelion Warnings
Use in moderation if pregnant or breastfeeding.
The Dandelion In The Kitchen - Cooking With Dandelion
Dandelion was once a popular country veg, used in all kinds of dishes. It is still used in some places though mainly as a salad leaf. I like to add dandelion leaf to a salad too, and keep a pot of dandelion growing in my kitchen for that purpose.
Dandelion has a bitter'ish taste, like some of the curly lettuce varieties (who's names escape me right now..) it has a nice crunch, and is packed full of vitamins.
This year I will be experimenting with cooking with medicinal plants more, and dandelion is one that I am keen to get to grips with. There are links to two amazing Dandelion recipes below, which I found on the internet. I intend to try these as soon as my dandelion seedlings are ready to pick.
Dandelion Recipies
Recipie For Dandelion Fritters Easy to follow recepie, with step by step pictures, teaching you how to make yummy, dandelion fritters. Dandelion Wine Learn how to make dandelion wine, put all those pesky dandelions to good use!
Growing Your Own Dandelion
I like to grow dandelion myself, I know there are thousands of plants just ready for picking in the wild, but I get a bit OCD about the low growing plants, I imagine dogs and foxes have peed all over them! For this reason I like to grow dandelion at home, so that I can enjoy it safe in the knowledge that it has not been peed on!
It's very easy to grow dandelion, all you need are some dandelion clocks, soil, and a little patience. Dandelion is quick to germinate and grows like mad in the spring and early summer, I am planting mine a bit late this year (May) but I should be able to enjoy fresh dandelion by July.
Dandelion leaves are best when picked before the plant has flowered, I want to use the flowers too, so will be having two pots of Dandelion, one for outdoors with flowers, and one for indoors with the other salad veg. The one that I will use for salad, I will not let flower, so hopefully I can keep the leaves tender.
Some Interesting Dandelion facts
It is thought that dandelion herb takes its name from the French ' dent de lion', which translates as lions tooth, this was a description of its sharply pointed ragged leaves.
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