Why are dandelions considered pests?

[ChanellG]

Really? I had always thought the only difference is the Dandy's that people buy in the stores are grown larger, is it that this is a different species then the wild type? Seriously they look identical to me, but if they are different I wonder why? You know I always wondered if there was a way I could cultivate this in a more uniform way for my turtles, but I have never seen dandelion seeds or plants available in any of the catalogs which might be why I had such a faulty assumption. The things you learn on the net

Think of it like the difference between a parent plant and a second generation plant from seed that has cross pollinated with it's neighbors. A few years ago, my father brought me a large container of Thai basil. Not only did everything else related become Thai Basil, I had Thai basil plants coming up way across the yard.

Carrots are one of the plants that you have to isolate because the seed won't be true to the parent. Think about this happening in multiple generations of the dandelion and you'll end up with a similar, but different plant.

 

[Primalclaws1974]

Think of it like the difference between a parent plant and a second generation plant from seed that has cross pollinated with it's neighbors. A few years ago, my father brought me a large container of Thai basil. Not only did everything else related become Thai Basil, I had Thai basil plants coming up way across the yard.

Carrots are one of the plants that you have to isolate because the seed won't be true to the parent. Think about this happening in multiple generations of the dandelion and you'll end up with a similar, but different plant.

I suppose I see where you are coming from. My mother-in-law had always fed finches thistle-seed. When the thistles started growing they stopped feeding the birds, and chopped down the plants. When it warmed up the next year, the plants grew again, even though no new seed had been introduced.

 

[ChanellG]

I suppose I see where you are coming from. My mother-in-law had always fed finches thistle-seed. When the thistles started growing they stopped feeding the birds, and chopped down the plants. When it warmed up the next year, the plants grew again, even though no new seed had been introduced.

That's the problem with the dandelion umbels. The wind spreads them and you can't just pull them up. If you don't get the entire root, they grow back and spread with a vengeance. Any plant that chokes out your grass or groundcover or even potted plants is considered harmful to that plant.

If You're plowing a field on a farm you can treat them as green manure, but it in the city they are mostly a nuisance to urban landscaping.