Dandelions

Q. I am at my wit's end with nasty dandelions. How can I keep them out of my lawn this spring and summer?

A. You must do two main things aside from any spray applications you do. First do not let them bloom and go to seed. One small yellow flower can produce over 100 new plants as quickly as you can say weed! Do not put them in your compost pile but tie them up in garbage bags and discard. Consider hiring a couple kids to pick them and discard properly. They will do it until they get bored. Secondly when you pull the weed out of the ground make sure that you get the entire root. Leaving a bit still there will enable the plant to send new shoots up to the surface and produce more jagged foliage and blooms.

Unless you want to use an herbicide there is not much you can do to get rid of the dandelions except dig them out of the lawn. A special dandelion tool makes the job much easier and does not leave a noticeable hole in the lawn. To reduce your dandelion population over time set your lawnmower blade a little higher. The lawn will be fuller and thicker if it's not mowed quite so closely and a thick lawn will eventually choke out dandelions.

Q. Hope you can help with this. I heard not too long ago that you can get rid of dandelions with tea but don't know where I heard about it and didn't get the info on how to do it. Have you heard about this? They said it was the most inexpensive way to get rid of them pesky weeds. A lot of people would really  like to know the answer. I just found your newsletter today and have enjoyed reading it and I am signing up for it.

A. Thank you for your comments. I have done quite a few searches and have not uncovered a tea that is recommended to kill dandelions. All I can find is a tea made out of the flowers for drinking. Plus people boast of their fine dandelion leaf salads as a great way to keep down the population. I know you can make wine out of the flowers but none of these ideas are to kill the weed merely to use it up.

Tea is always listed as a beneficial food for various garden plants. I have my doubts that there is a tea which would actually kill them as it is used for benefits and does not contain harmful ingredients.