Dandelion
Common Name: Dandelion
Latin Name: Taraxacum officinale
Description: Dandelions typically have sharply serrated green leaves that resemble teeth. The French name for dandelion is “Dent De Lion,” which means tooth of the lion. Dandelions have one yellow flower per stem. These flowers mature and become the white, puffy blow balls that many of us blew with the wind in our childhood.
Habitat: Dandelions can be found growing almost everywhere worldwide. They are often observed growing on lawns and roadways as well as in wild woodland settings. Varieties of dandelions can be harvested in the desert, the tundra, and everywhere in between.
Food: Greens can be used in salads, smoothies, or trailside nibbles. Flower can be eaten raw or made into jam. Roots can be eaten raw or dried and ground up as coffee substitute.
Nutrition: Author Janice J. Schofield writes that dandelion greens are: exceptionally high in vitamins A, B, and C, and the minerals copper, phosphorus, potassium, iron, calcium, and magnesium. Flowers are rich in vitamin D. Dandelions are widely used to treat obstructions of the liver, kidneys, gallbladder, pancreas, and spleen. Dandelion root contains 25% insulin by volume, which makes it favorable for diabetics.
Watch Stalking Wild Greens - Episode 2 Dandelion
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Recipe: Dandelion-Infused Honey
1 cup freshly picked dandelion flowers
1 cup raw honey
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