The Whistling Gardener

by Steve Smith

Steve Smith is owner of Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville, located at 3915 Sunnyside Blvd., and a respected local expert on all things horticultural. You can reach Steve at 425-334-2002 or by e-mail at info@sunnysidenursery.net.

Before the 1600s there were no dandelions in North America. We can thank all those European emigrants (probably some of my relatives, no doubt) that brought them when they came to settle in this country.

You see, dandelions have a long history of culinary and medicinal uses and therefore it was prudent to bring them along when one traveled to another country. The use of dandelions for medicinal purposes can be traced as far back as 2000 years ago where in China they were used to relieve liver and kidney aliments. They are high in calcium and potassium and many other minerals and can act as an antioxidant as well. They can be eaten fresh, cooked or dried and smoked, and yes, you can even make wine from the flower petals. There are actually several cultivated varieties that are "farmed" in some parts of the world. But in my garden they are a bloody weed.

This time of year you can see vast drifts of dandelion flowers along unmaintained right-of-ways or neglected lots or yards. They are very adept at colonizing a patch of ground and choking out every other possible life form. Their seeds are dispersed with the aid of the wind and can seemingly germinate and take root almost everywhere, such as cracks in the sidewalk or seams in the rain gutters, at the base or in the center of my perennials, and of course in the lawn. If a gardener doesn't do something to manage them, they will ultimately take over the yard.

Because dandelions have a deep taproot, it is very difficult to remove them by hand. Any small piece of root left behind is all it takes to get it growing again. I have a favorite weeding fork that I use to dig out these types of weeds, but no matter how deep I dig the dandelions will always manage to return, often the very same season. The only realistic way to permanently remove a dandelion is with some sort of chemical, either natural or synthetic. Here are our choices.

Good old "Weed-B-Gon": This blend of 2-4-D type chemicals has been around for a heck of a long time and probably needs to go away one of these days. It is one of the most overused weed killers on the market, but because it is cheap and effective it is still very popular. The biggest drawback for us in the northwest is that it really doesn't work very well until the temperatures get into the 70s, so it is not as effective this time of year. Also, if you use this product you cannot reseed a lawn for 30 days.

Weed Beater Ultra: This is a Bonide product that contains no 2-4-D but rather a new ingredient called Carfentrazone. Extremely low concentrations are all that are needed to kill dandelions (and many other broadleaf weeds) and it works in temperatures as low as 45 degrees. And, you can reseed your lawn in as little as 2 weeks after application. I have used this product as a spot spray for all sorts of broadleaf weeds and it is very effective.

Weed Beater Complete: This is another new Bonide introduction that contains both a weed preventer for grassy weeds and a weed killer for broadleaf weeds all in the same bag. Prodiamine is the ingredient that prevents many grassy weeds from germinating and Sulfentrazone (a relative of the above Carfentrazone) kills already existing broadleaf weeds like dandelions and clover. This product is designed to be used on lawns only, and because it is a granule, one needs to be careful where it is spread.

Ortho Ecosense Lawn Weed Killer: Mostly non-toxic, this new product is made essentially from iron. It was developed by the same German company that brought us Sluggo, the non-toxic slug and snail killer. You can use this with complete confidence that you are not poisoning your yard or potentially contaminating Puget Sound. Like most "natural" products, Ecosense requires a couple of applications to control dandelions and it takes 30 days or so to finally finish them off.

As much as I enjoy the look of fields of dandelions this time of year, the harsh reality is that if we don't control them they will eventually control us, so some sort of management program is necessary. Choose your weapon and get on with it before they all go to seed and take over the whole garden as well as the lawn. Weeding tools, natural or synthetic chemicals or thick mulches (in the beds and not the lawn) all work to some degree.

As the saying goes: "A stitch in time saves nine." The sooner you do something, the better.



Steve Smith is owner of Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville and can be reached at

425-334-2002 or online at info@sunnysidenursery.net