Germination temperature
5-35 °C (41-95 °F); best in cool, alternating temperatures, slower above 20 °C (68 °F).
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Dandelion is a hardy taprooted perennial grown for its leaves and roots. Sow the seed on the surface in light, keep it moist, and pick the flower heads before they turn into seed clocks.
5-35 °C (41-95 °F); best in cool, alternating temperatures, slower above 20 °C (68 °F).
On the surface or under a light dusting of soil; no deeper than 2 cm (0.8 in).
About 7-10 days in cool, moist conditions.
Light is the strongest germination trigger.
Optional: one week of cold, moist stratification raises germination to about 90%.
Both: sow direct or raise seedlings and plant out in mid to late spring.
Use fresh seed. Dandelion seed stays viable for about a year or less, so do not keep old packets for several seasons.
Not needed. The seed has no hard coat.
Helpful but optional. Keep the seed cold and moist for one week before sowing; K-State reports this raises germination to about 90%. Fresh seed can also germinate straight away in light, moist conditions.
Not needed. Light and steady surface moisture matter more.
Seed germinates between 5 and 35 °C (41-95 °F). It does best with cool nights and mild days, such as 15 °C by day and 5 °C at night (59/41 °F) or 25/15 °C (77/59 °F); speed and percentage fall above 20 °C (68 °F). In hot lowland India, sow in the cool season.
Scatter the seed on the surface and press it in, or cover with only a dusting of fine soil. Emergence is the same from 0 to 2 cm (0.8 in), drops below that and stops below 8 cm (3 in).
Any soil will do, but dandelion responds to fertility. For tender leaves and good roots use a loose, fertile, well-drained soil; in trays use a fine seed compost.
Keep the surface evenly damp until seedlings appear; mist or water gently so the seed is not washed away.
Light strongly stimulates germination. Do not cover trays with anything opaque; a clear lid is fine.
About 7-10 days in cool, moist conditions; slower when temperatures are high.
Prick out tray-raised seedlings into small pots at two to three true leaves and plant them out in mid to late spring, before the taproot grows long. Space plants 25-30 cm (10-12 in) apart in rows at least as far apart.
Young plants form a flat rosette and a fast-growing taproot. Weed carefully: dandelion grows far larger with water and without competition.
A plant flowers once it reaches about 20 leaves and a strong taproot. Spring-sown plants sometimes flower in autumn, but most flower the following spring.
Cause: seed covered too deeply, old seed or a dry surface. Fix: sow fresh seed on the surface in light, keep it moist, and consider a week of cold stratification.
Cause: seed heads left to ripen. Seed can be viable just 3-10 days after a flower closes, and a plant can produce 50-150 heads a year. Fix: pick flower heads as soon as they close.
Cause: root fragments as small as a few millimetres regrow, especially pieces near the crown. Fix: lift the whole root with a narrow spade or fork.
Cause: dry, poor soil and weed competition; in the K-State trials irrigated plants gave about seven times the leaf weight of dryland plants. Fix: water steadily, weed and space plants properly.
Cut leaves as needed through the season with scissors or a knife, leaving the crown to regrow.
Lift roots in autumn or early spring; plants in their second year give larger roots. Shake off the soil, cut off the tops and wash the roots in cold water.
Dandelion prefers sun but also grows in partial shade.
Dandelion is a persistent garden weed. Grow it in a dedicated bed and deadhead regularly so the wind does not carry seed into lawns and vegetable plots.
Sow dandelion on the surface in good light for leaves and roots from your own garden.
Barely, if at all. Light is the main germination trigger, so press the seed onto the surface or cover it with only a dusting of soil, never more than 2 cm.
Leaves can be cut whenever plants are large enough. Roots are lifted in autumn or early spring, and second-year plants give bigger roots.
Remove flower heads as soon as they close, before the seed clocks form, and lift unwanted plants with the whole root.