Dandelion is a common meadow herb of the sunflower family.
The name dandelion is taken from the French word “dent de lion” meaning lion’s tooth. The weed was given its name because of the way the leaves are etched — some people thought the leaves looked like a lion’s mouth.
The dandelion is the only flower that represents the 3 celestial bodies of the sun, moon and stars. The yellow flower resembles the sun, the puff ball resembles the moon and the seeds resemble the stars.
When you look at a field of dandelions,
you can either see hundreds of weeds or thousands of wishes.
The dandelion flower opens to greet the morning and closes in the evening to go to sleep.
Dandelions have one of the longest flowering seasons of any plant.
Seeds are often carried as many as 5 miles (8 kilometers) from their origin!
Dandelion can be used in the production of wine and root beer. Root of dandelion can be used as a substitute for coffee.
Every part of the dandelion is useful: root, leaves, flower. It can be used for food, medicine and dye for coloring. The leaves, the flowers and the roots are edible. A cup of dandelion greens would give you about 112 per cent of your recommended daily amount of vitamin A and 535 per cent of your recommended daily amount of vitamin K, and other things like calcium, iron and magnesium. Dandelions are high in vitamin C.
Dandelions have sunk their roots deep into history. They were well known to ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, and have been used in Chinese traditional medicine for over a thousand years.
Dandelion is used in folk medicine to treat infections and liver disorders. Tea made of dandelion act as diuretic.
There are several superstitions involving dandelions, including making a wish and blowing off all the dandelion seeds to make a wish come true.
The Story of the Dandelion
Long, long ago, the flowers had a huge argument about which of them was the most beautiful, the most special, the most loved by the humans and by the fairies. The argument lasted for weeks, with each flower claiming to be the most beautiful and the most loved. Finally, all of the flowers agreed to let the Flower Fairies decide.
The Flower Fairies sent they’re gentlest and kindest of spirit fairy to settle the problem and to give one plant her blessing and the title of the “most perfect” flower. The little Fairy decided to test each flower by asking them one question.
The first flower the Fairy talked to was the Rose. “Where would you most like to live?” she asked it. “I would like to climb the castle wall,” said the Rose. “And then kings and queens and nobles would pass by everyday and exclaim over my beauty, my scent and my delicate nature.” The Flower Fairy walked sadly away from the Rose.
Next the Fairy came to a tulip, standing tall and proud. “Where would you most like to live?” she asked the Tulip.
“Oh, I want to live in a public garden” said the Tulip. “Where everyday people would come and admire my wonderful colors and see how straight and tall I stand.” Once again, the Fairy walked a way feeling sad.
She walked until she came to a forest. There she found some Violets. She asked them, “Where would you most like to live, little Violets?” “Oh,” said the violets quietly, “We like it here hidden in the woods where no one can see us and where the trees keep the sun from dulling our beautiful color.” The fairy thanked the Violets and walked on looking for more flowers to talk to.
She talked to the Tiger Lily who was much too wild and fierce. She talked to the Sunflower who barely answered her because all she wanted to do was be warmed by the sun. The little Flower Fairy talked to the Orchids who only wanted to be taken out to dances and she tried to talk to the Narcissus but it was too busy looking at it’s reflection in the water to speak to her.
The little Fairy, with tears in her eyes, was ready to give up and go home when she came to a field with bright fluffy yellow flowers on long thin stalks. The leaves were long and jagged and very close to the ground. But the flowers….oh how happy and cheerful they looked in the field!
“Little one,” said the Flower Fairy “What are you called and where would you like to live?”
“I am a dandelion,” said the little flower.”I’d like to live where ever there are children. I want to live beside the road, and in the meadows, and push up between the sidewalks in the cities, and make everyone feel happier when they see my bright colors.” The Dandelion chattered on happily saying, “I want to be the first flower that the children pick in the spring and take to their mothers. And I could tell if a child likes butter by being rubbed under their chins, and if a child makes a wish and blows my seeds, I could carry that wish on the wind.”
The Flower Fairy smiled brightly and said,”Little Dandelion, you are the most perfect and special flower of all and you shall have your wish! You will blossom everywhere from spring till fall, and be known as the children’s flower.”
And this is why the dandelion comes so early and pushes her head up everywhere with such strength and determination. And that is why she is so loved by children throughout her long life.
The Dandelion
by Mrs. E. P. Erskine
“Oh, dandelion, yellow as gold,
What do you do all day?”
“I just wait here in the long green grass
Till the children come to play.”
“Oh, dandelion, yellow as gold,
What do you do all night?”
“I wait and wait while the cool dew falls,
And my hair grows long and white.”
“And what do you do when your hair grows white,
And the children come to play?”
“They take me up in their dimpled hands
And blow my hair away.”
Oh, bright all day in the grass, like stars,
And fit for a chain of gold.
The children laugh when they see him smile,
But they love him best when he’s old.
I consider dandelions flowers full of life joy and energy. I’vealways loved them. I was impressed greatly by the story about the dandelions when I was in the elementary school.
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Joe Ann Pfeil Zerfoss
A flower! I love the story & the poem. Makes me smile at how true it is that children love dandelions.
Lexi Vallone
This is the first “flower” my kids would pick for me. I loved receiving them.
Irina Bekreniova
My girls loved them too. Field and meadow and forest flowers are the flowers of my childhood.
Nata Sakovska
There were a lot of them in our school garden. We collected and made wreaths. And my grandmother even made a salad. I did not try … Maybe for the better. Something tells me that is very healthy and special but not for me.
I like dandelions. I used to blow off the dandelion seeds but I’ve never made wishes. I enjoy watching dandelion fields when they are yellow. I didn’t know that seeds are often carried as many as 8 kilometers from their origin. That was interesting to know that the word dandelion means lion’s tooth. I don’t want to try a salad of this beautiful flower 🙂
I think that Dandelion is a flower. The fact that every part of the dandelion is useful and edible surprised me the most. I sometimes blow off all the dandelion seeds to make my wish come true.
As for me it is a bright and interesting flower but I don’t like this flower because it is very common. But my mum says that dandelion is a very beautiful flower and it is one of her fawourite flowers.
I think dandelions are amazing.I remember how I made a wish when I blew it off. I think that dandelion is a
fairy flower. I was very suprised to know that seeds are often carried as many as 8 kilometers from their origin!
Dandelion is a very beautiful flower. For me it is associated with spring. When I was a child, my mother used to make a dandelion wreath for me, because they are very good for wreaths.