The dandelion (Taraxacum) is a versatile herb, which for some is just a weed, for others, it is an important medicinal herb. You can find out here in our special article how best to remove the daisy family ( Asteraceae ) from your lawn and garden.

Remove dandelions

The most important thing when removing dandelions is timing because once the dandelions are sown, it is too late. If you can’t find time to remove the dandelions before they bloom, you can buy yourself some time by mowing the lawn. When mowing, the flowers are cut off so that reproduction is prevented for the time being – but of course, the dandelion continues to grow and with this method will only flower a little later.

Removing Dandelions: Different Methods

So what makes the dandelion so unpopular with gardeners? On the one hand, it displaces other plants that are less competitive. The dandelions overgrew practically every location. On the other hand, it is difficult to remove because it has a long taproot and can spread rapidly with numerous seeds via the wind. Here are a few methods for you to tackle the dandelion.

Removing dandelions: mechanical methods

To successfully get rid of the dandelion, there are several methods such as the mechanical method of pricking. To do this, you need a tool like a weed picker, with which you can remove the dandelion and the taproot. You can of course try this with a simple garden shovel, but it’s a lot easier with special weed pickers. There are also special dandelion pullers on the market with a tip that resembles a corkscrew.

Such cutters and pullers work very well on lawns, but these devices soon reach their limits in the grooves between paving stones and on our terraces – in contrast to dandelions, because this herb is so strong that it can even blast asphalt. With such joints, you should rather use special joint scrapers.

There is still the method of flaming the weeds with a gas burner, but this method does not have a lasting effect on weeds, which like the dandelion have a strong root system. You should therefore rather resort to the method of cutting, which will also catch the roots of the dandelion.

Removing Dandelions: Chemical Methods

If the pricking out is too strenuous or time-consuming for you, you can also rely on chemicals that can effectively remove weeds such as dandelions. There are a number of weed killers that remove weeds from your lawn and often contain the following active ingredients:

• MCPA (2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid)
• Dicamba (3,6-dichloro-2-methoxy benzoic acid)
• 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid)
• Mecoprop-P (methylchlorophenoxypropionic acid)

Remedies like these remove weeds like dandelions while protecting your lawn. However, you should only use the products on the lawn and not in your beds, because the active ingredients could damage your dicotyledonous vegetables or ornamental plants, such as legumes ( Fabaceae ) or composites ( Asteraceae ).

When using chemical pesticides, always observe the safety guidelines and personal protective equipment that are absolutely necessary for the application. Avoid skin and eye contact and always adhere to the application rates indicated and the correct application. In principle, the use of herbicides in your own small garden is not yet necessary because of some dandelion plants in the lawn or in the beds, because mechanical methods and home remedies achieve good results in control.

Removing dandelions: home remedies

A very special method for controlling dandelions is the use of small rodents such as hares, rabbits or guinea pigs. If you or your children own such pets, you can simply eat them in your garden and kill the dandelions. These rodents are really crazy about dandelions and by moving the outdoor enclosure or letting them run around freely, the rodents have the opportunity to eat the dandelions.

It is better to keep your hands off home remedies such as salt or vinegar, especially on paving and on terraces, because the rain will only wash these substances into the soil and groundwater, which is harmful to the environment. In addition, according to the Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1529, the use of salt or vinegar as weed control agents is prohibited and therefore even punishable.

Avoid dandelions

In order not to have to resort to drastic control methods in the first place, you can also prevent dandelions from settling in your garden at all. Dandelions are particularly popular in soils that are heavily supplied with nitrogen, which is why you should avoid excessive nitrogen fertilization on endangered areas. Articulating is also very beneficial for lawn weeds such as dandelions because by opening the sward with the scarifier, you create perfect places where the incoming seeds can grow without any problems. Therefore it is better not to scarify. 

However, what helps against weeds on the lawn is regular lawn mowing. However, you should not wait too long to do this – if the weeds have already formed seeds, the mowing only spreads the weeds on the lawn. Instead of killing the weeds, you can also worry about not using the dandelions for other purposes. For example, dandelions can be used in syrups, teas, or plant strengtheners. Here you can find out more about the use and use of the dandelion.

1. Kill the dandelions with boiling water

If you are looking for a grandmother’s remedy for dandelions, we have a free, natural solution for you. Indeed, did you know that boiling water can help eliminate dandelions that grow in the lawn?

And yes, you just need to take very hot or better boiling water to successfully eradicate dandelions from a lawn. Simply sprinkle the dandelions on the ground with this boiling water. The dandelions should die off quickly and give way to a beautiful, healthy green lawn after a few days.

Be careful not to burn yourself with this boiling water or to escape from around the dandelion plant.

2. Tool for removing large dandelion plants

If you choose to pull up dandelions, it is important to attack large plants first. You know the dandelion plants with many large leaves in rosettes. Be careful to pull out all the roots of the plants, otherwise, you risk seeing other dandelions appear on the grass very quickly.

To help you uproot large dandelion plants, you can use a manual weed killer that will remove all the roots of dandelions and other weeds from the lawn. 10 Tips offer below a tool that allows you to remove in-depth, so with the roots, the dandelions on the lawn. A tool appreciated by users!

3. Vinegar, a natural dandelion weedkiller

White vinegar is very often used as a natural recipe at home. Vinegar is therefore an excellent anti-dandelion to test now to quickly eradicate all dandelions and weeds.

You just need to let some vinegar run through the center of the dandelion plant. You can pluck the flower and leaves from the dandelion to make sure you reach the roots of the dandelion with the vinegar.

For an even more effective result against dandelions add coarse salt at the base of the plant before pouring in the vinegar.

4. Remove dandelions naturally with salt

As with removing weeds, coarse salt can also be used to kill dandelions. A natural and free weedkiller to quickly test on your lawn. For this anti dandelion treatment you need:

• Remove flowers and leaves from dandelions
• Put a little coarse salt at the base of the dandelion plant
• Spray a little water on the coarse salt if the weather is very dry.

As with the previous track, you can run some white vinegar over the salt instead of the water. This will be even more effective in treating dandelions and other weeds.