Colorado State Publications Blog

Time Machine Tuesday: Dandelions

By Amy Zimmer: Published on
Colorado State Publications Blog
Dandelions everywhere!
They spring up along ditch banks,
crowd into open places in alfalfa fields,
or luxuriate in gardens and flower-beds.
They swarm over vacant city lots,
troop along the sidewalks,
and encroach upon lawns to the very door-stone
 of rich and poor alike.
This was written a century ago, but is just as true today! The above quote is from the 1918 Colorado Experiment Station publication The Dandelion in Colorado. This publication discussed experiments with the dandelion, including spraying with various forms of herbicide, good old-fashioned digging, and even applying gasoline! Unfortunately, “it is evident from the foregoing that there is yet no easy, certain method known to the writer by which the dandelion may be exterminated and held in check for any considerable length of time.” As this has seemingly not changed in the past century, it seems that dandelions will continue to be the scourge of our lawns for some time to come.
Amy Zimmer
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