When you read the word ‘dandelion’ what springs to your mind? Are you thinking "this author’s mad? Delightful? No way! They’re a wretched weed always spreading in my garden and ruining the lawn”? Maybe you have happy childhood memories of playing ‘what’s the time?’ with the puffy seed head? Or does your mind turn to their reputation as beneficial for us and you think “oh yes, I’ve heard it’s good for your liver”? Maybe it’s a mix of all these reactions?

I love this humble little plant and hope that you will too by the end of this article, if you don’t already.

Dandelion - bold, invasive, seemingly indestructible, is known as a ‘plant of civilisation’ i.e. a plant that grows wherever it wants. It doesn’t obey the laws of neat garden beds or tidy lawns, it pops up everywhere and seems to follow civilisation in ‘developed’ nations. There’s a theory that plants that do this are the ones we really need especially as we stray further away from traditional diets and eat more processed foods.

However, dandelion, with its cheery sunshine yellow flowers, is no mere pesky weed. It’s an outstanding herbal medicine, a richly nutritious food that grows without fuss, without needing pesticides or fertiliser, and it certainly doesn’t care how much water it gets. It’s funny how we place such value on things that are rare and hard to come by, and we overlook what grows at our doorsteps.

What does dandelion offer as a herb?

There’s a long list of all the wonderful properties of dandelion but very simply: it’s a powerful liver and kidney tonic helping to keep both those organs of elimination healthy. It’s said that, emotionally, the liver is where we store anger and the kidneys – fear. There’s even an old-school term I learned from my teacher, Dorothy Hall, for when a person’s liver is congested and they are unwell, cranky, headachy etc – she called it S.O.L – S..t On the Liver.

Dandelion is so generous that all parts of the flowering plant can be used as food and medicinally:

• The roots, best harvested in autumn, are one of the best liver tonics known. They're also a bitter tonic to stimulate digestion, help relieve constipation, and are a diuretic. I frequently use it as an extract in my herbal medicines.

• The roots can be roasted then ground into a 'coffee' or tea. You  can make this at home or buy it commercially; you’ll find a few brands in your local supermarket or health food shop. I love a good dandy chai (again home-made or commercial) which is the dandelion roots mixed with chai spices like cloves and cinnamon.

• Tender, fresh roots can be chopped like a carrot and added to stir fries and soups, or, if you want to juice the roots, harvest them in spring.

• The leaves, best picked in spring, are a mild diuretic helpful for fluid retention, bladder and kidney problems, bile flow and constipation.

• The leaves are also rich in iron, calcium and other minerals. They can be steamed, boiled or added raw to salads. Horta, a well-known Greek dish is made based on wild greens like dandelion.

• Dandelion flower heads can be infused in oil to make a wonderfully soothing balm for aching, tired muscles. They can also be made into wine, and used in cooking as in this tasty recipe on our website https://www.estuarylearning.org.au/recipes/dandelion-biscuits

Dandelion has a bitter taste. A lot of us aren’t used to that these days, but it’s the bitterness that has a lot of the curative action on our bodies. Start with small amounts until you get accustomed to the taste and if eating it fresh, add plenty of seasoning such as olive oil, garlic, black pepper and other herbs like parsley.

The Energy and Symbolism of Dandelion

Our humble dandelion also enjoys a rich history of symbolism. For many people, they represent hope. They also represent resilience and survival with their ability to adapt. They can grow in the toughest places, popping up in cracks in paving, and mowing doesn’t discourage them from flowering, they simply grow with shorter stems. They also represent transformation and renewal as indicated in the cyclical nature of their growth from sunny yellow flower to ethereal puffy seed head. Blowing on the seeds (as I mentioned before the children’s game of telling the time) is also an act of wishing in many cultures and represents letting go, shedding what we no longer need).

But wait! There’s even more: the life cycle of our little ‘weed’ represents three celestial bodies: the joyful yellow flowers represent the sun; those lovely seed heads looking like a white globe represent the moon and the seeds as they disperse, are the stars.

Good for your garden

After all this, if you still aren’t convinced dandelions are wonderful, consider this: they are actually good for your garden! They attract pollinators, especially bees, and our pollinators need all the help they can get. I live in an area of very ‘neat’ gardens that, while rich in neatly trimmed hedges, are devoid of many flowering plants and on my daily walks I rarely see any bees until I arrive home. It’s almost enough to make this old herby weep, except I know that, while I have dandies in my garden, there’s hope.

Not only do dandelions attract our vital pollinators but they are good for your soil. Their deep roots break up compacted soil and bring nutrients to the surface for shallow feeding plants to enjoy.

A few fun facts about dandelions

• Their name is derived from the French ‘dent de lion’ – ‘teeth of the lion’ which describes the shape of the leaves.

• They are also known as ‘piss en lit’, or ‘wet the bed’ as eating too many dandelion flowers can cause children to do this.

• There is another plant often confused for a dandelion, ‘false dandelion’. They have similar yellow flowers that come from a central rosette, however the stems are different. True dandelions have a single hollow stem for each flower; false dandelions have tough wiry stems with many flowers on them.

For more dandelion fun, watch the first few minutes, tap your feet to the beat and enjoy The Dandelion Man.