Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) thrives in temperate regions and exists on playing fields, gardens, and lawns. It has yellow flower heads, that turn into fluffy white balls and disperse in the wind. In Australia, Dandelion is classed as an environmental weed.
It is often mistaken for weeds such as Catsear, and in its vegetative stages as Capeweed.
People often use the leaves, stems, flowers, and roots for medical purposes.
Once you read this, you will be able to:
- Identify Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale).
- Know its habitat.
- Know the best cultural and chemical options to control Dandelion.
Dandelion is a good indicator weed of soils low in Ca and high in K. For more information on common turf grass weeds check out our weed ID chart.
The distribution map for Dandelion is courtesy of The Atlas of Living Australia.
How to Identify Dandelions.
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is a perennial herb with a deep tap root, and its dark green leaves have a spear-shape. These lobed leaves have few to no hairs, and are 5 to 45 cm long. The lobes nearly always point backwards toward the crown of the plant, and look like the teeth of a pruning saw.
Dandelion Reproduction:
- Seed longevity: Dandelion seeds remain viable for over 5 years.
- Germination depth: The optimal germination depth is 2 cm.
- Seeds/head: The Dandelion flower produces an average of 250 seeds per flower head.
- Seeds/plant: An individual Dandelion plant produces up to 5,000 seeds.
You tend to see new seedlings of Dandelions in early to mid-Summer. These seeds are grey to white, fluffy and ball shaped. Wind is how most of the seeds move, and these germinate almost all the year-round.
Habitat: Dandelion prefers full sun and moist soil. But, once it establishes, it grows well in light shade and dry soils. Dandelions grow in gardens, playing fields, and waste places. You see this weed most often where the soil pH is above 7.0.
How to remove Dandelion from your lawn.
Non Chemical Control of Dandelion.
If Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is not widespread, you can pull it out by hand. However, you must make sure that you completely remove the entire root system to stop any re-growth. It tends to not normally reproduce vegetatively, but even if small root fragments are left behind these will grow into new plants.
Cutting back on potassium fertilizer also helps control Dandelion. If you do this, grass can outcompete Dandelion for soil potassium. This competitive advantage means that if you limit K supply, the grass wins at the expense of the weed.
Another non chemical means to control Dandelion is to avoid the heavy use of lime or dolomite. Heavy use of lime or dolomite favours Dandelions due to a preference for a soil pH above 7.
Being a perennial, in the long term you cannot effectively control Dandelions with regular mowing.
One last point is to be aware that Dandelion seeds last up to 5 years in the soil. This means there is a viable seed bank over this time. Dandelions will continue to pop back up unless you use pre-emergents.
Chemical Control of Dandelion.
There are several turf herbicides that control Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale).
Pre-emergent Control of Dandelion.
Apply pre-emergent herbicides for Dandelions in the Autumn or late Winter before the Dandelion seeds germinate.
Post Emergent Control of Dandelion.
The best time for effective post emergent treatment is after you see the Dandelion flower, and it’s in the “puffball” stage. This tends to be in the early Spring or late Summer into the early Autumn, and is when the weeds are actively growing.
- 2,4-D
- Dicamba. Do not use on Buffalo.
- MCPA.
- Stature Herbicide. Not for Home use
- QualiPro Negate. Do not use on Buffalo Grass, and only use on warm season turf.
- Casper Herbicide. Do not use on Buffalo.
- ProForce Weed Blast MA. Safe on Buffalo.
- ProForce Contra M. Do not use on Buffalo.
Non Selective Control of Dandelion.
Non selective options include Glyphosate (Rapid Fire 800), Numchuk Quad and Cortex Duo. If you use Glyphosate to control Dandelions and water quality is an issue then use the tank adjuvant ProForce Manta Ray.
In conclusion.
The key to adopt an integrated program of cultural and chemical means. The long term viability of Dandelion seed in the soil means that any management program needs to take this into account as weeds will reoccur from seed whilst this remains viable.
How to kill dandelions in the Autumn
The most effective method to kill Dandelions in the Autumn, is to use a broadleaf herbicide specific for Dandelions. In the Autumn, Dandelions are transferring nutrients down into their roots to store for Winter which means it is a great time to target their root systems. In the Autumn, any Dandelion weed killer is more effectively absorbed and so kills the plant better than at other times of the year.
Key points for using Dandelion weed killers in the Autumn.
Choice of Dandelion weed killer:
When you buy a Dandelion weed killer Look for one that contains active ingredients like 2,4-D, Dicamba, or MCPA. These all work well against broadleaf weeds like Dandelions.
Application timing:
The best time to apply a Dandelion weed killer is in the late Summer or early Autumn when Dandelions actively move nutrients to their roots.
Spray method:
You will get the best results if you ensure that the herbicide reaches the foliage, so make sure you thoroughly cover the leaves of Dandelions.
Spot treatment:
If Dandelions are not widespread, simply spot-spray individual plants with a Dandelion weed killer rather than spraying the entire lawn.
How to kill dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) naturally.
There are several natural Dandelion weed killers you can use.
Hand pull.
In the early Spring dig up the entire plant, including all the roots, before the Dandelion flowers and seeds.
Boiling water.
Boiling water is an excellent natural Dandelion weed killer but but it is non selective and also kills grass. Simply pour boiling water onto the Dandelions to kill them. You may need to repeat this if the Dandelions come back.
Mowing.
Regular mowing of your lawn prevents dandelion from flowering and so prevents it from producing seeds. However as its a perennial weed this has to be a regular process and does not directly manage the weed
Aeration.
Any cultural work that encourages healthy turf will crowd out Dandelions.
Limit the Use of Lime and Potassium.
As discussed earlier the use of high amounts of K and lime tends to favour Dandelions a tthe expense of turf grass.
Organic weed killer.
The acidity of apple cider vinegar or white vinegar destroys Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale). Simply cover the Dandelion weed in vinegar (preferably on a sunny day), but be careful not to spray it on the surrounding grass. The Dandelion will wither and turn brown within a few hours
Failing this a good home recipe is to mix vinegar, salt and liquid dish soap to quickly kill weeds.
How to kill dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) without killing grass.
The best and most cost effective post emergent herbicide is 2,4-D (though there are many others that you can use). You apply this several times over a year. 2,4-D does a great job of killing Dandelions, and also kills Clover. It is very safe on grass unless you apply at too high a rate.
Other post emergent options include: MCPA, and Dicamba but you are best using these in mixtures.
How to kill dandelions in lawns?
You can kill dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) in your lawn with cultural methods such as pulling them up by hand, herbicides, or even with boiling water.
Herbicides.
Use a selective broadleaf weedkiller to kill dandelions without any harm to the grass. If you use a non-selective herbicide like glyphosate, it kills all the vegetation it comes into contact with as it is not selective.
The best time to spray the dandelions is when they are young, as this is when they are most susceptible to dandelion weed killers
Apply herbicides in the late Summer or Autumn. This is the time when the plants focus their energy on storing carbohydrates in their roots, and means the herbicide will move around the plant.
