Just learned dandelions aren't from here

Was pulling weeds in my backyard yesterday and got curious. Looked it up. Dandelions were brought over from Europe on purpose. Every single one in North America is an invasive species. I've been fighting them for 15 years. Anyone else feel betrayed by a plant?

4 comments

4 Comments

troyknight1mo ago

Well, at least now I feel better about failing to kill them.

olivia_lopez981mo ago

Okay but calling them "invasive" is a BIT strong since they don't actually choke out native plants the way kudzu or garlic mustard does. They just spread fast in disturbed soil like lawns, which is more like being an aggressive weed than a true ecosystem wrecker. So you can still hate them for ruining your perfect grass without feeling guilty about Mother Nature.

charles8361mo ago

The real issue is that calling them "weeds" or "aggressive" lets people off the hook for how they got there in the first place. Most of these plants spread because we stripped the topsoil and killed the microbes, then dumped fertilizer and water on a monoculture. Fix the dirt and you'll have native clovers and wild violets that actually want to be there, no battle needed.

abby_morgan184d ago

Wait, you're telling me these things DON'T actually overtake forests like kudzu does? I've spent years pulling them out of my flower beds thinking I was saving the local ecosystem from a botanical apocalypse. Maybe I need to rethink my whole approach to yard work and just let some of them be.