dandelions

Emm-in-a-pickle

I love dandelions, especially this year as the fruit trees are late coming into blossom, they`re a real Life-saver for the early bees!
Just because I have a `wild` garden, doesn`t mean I don`t despair with stuff like nettles, bramble, bindweed, and goosegrass when they get a bit too out of hand - but the dandelions are great! Apart from the many uses other posters have mentioned they don`t sting or scratch, nor choke other plants!
As bee-food, they are more worthy of a place in any garden than some of the flowering plants that gardeners spend a fortune on. And they are pretty until they go to seed.

Davesnave

pawsies wrote: »

.......neighbour has loads of flowering ones on their lawn which is bound to come into my garden. I feel like going and cutting theirs!!!:/

:rotfl:Don't ever move to the country! :rotfl:

Little_Vics

I've just spent a good hour digging them all up with a cunning little dandelion-digger-up-er. Am totally expecting to have to do it all again in a few weeks.

I'm in the country too, so don't feel too bad about the bees. There's plenty around here for them to have fun with.

Alias_Omega

Re-turfed the garden a few years back, no daisy's or dandelions at all. Kids go pick some dandelions from the front garden to feed to the rabbits, 2-3 days later. Lots of dandelions, which grow back every days once picked.

Its a good job the rabbits love them..

Waterlily24

Davesnave wrote: »

:rotfl:Don't ever move to the country! :rotfl:

lol That's so true, we live in a rural area and this is what's next door to us. It's mowed regularly with a tractor with a mower on the back but just doesn't cut the flower heads off. My hubby picks all the flower heads off of the ones in our garden but I think it's a waste of time lol!!!!!

Little_Vics

oh gosh Waterlily - that's awful!!!

franklally

Little_Vics wrote: »

I've just spent a good hour digging them all up with a cunning little dandelion-digger-up-er. Am totally expecting to have to do it all again in a few weeks.

sorry little vics but I'm out every morning digging the new ones up,at the moment - there are only a few of them each day now but I like to get them out before they take hold.
In a few weeks I expect they'll have died down and I just get the occasional one coming through.

FLA27

splodger_seedswapper wrote: »

i love dandies at this time of year - only tiime i can collect enough flower heads for wine making :beer:
lots of insects (including bees) love them - so i live with them - they are not the worst weed in the (my) garden afterall :cool:

Just got my first home made wine of the season going - Dandelion!

Love them too, for this reason.

Little_Vics

how on earth do you make dandelion wine?

rockiedog

My 50 y.o. tortoise LOVES them, unfortunately there's more of them in the front than the back garden! The leaves are a great favourite with tortie too.