VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Taraxacum officinale | Dandelion 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Dandelion is a preferred food of domestic sheep grazing on mountain
meadows [83] and is readily eaten by cattle on rough fescue (Festuca
scabrella) prairies in Alberta [38].  Dandelion is commonly eaten in the
spring by sharp-tailed grouse [89].  It is a minor component of bighorn
sheep diets in the Upper Yellowstone Valley [63] and is an important
food for pocket gophers on mountain grasslands of Colorado [132].
Dandelion is an important source of nectar and pollen for bees in Alaska
[96].  Dandelion is consumed by deer and elk in the spring, summer, and
fall in meadows of the Rocky Mountains [73].

In Yellowstone National Park, dandelion is an important food for grizzly
bears in summer.  Peak use in in June [82].  Leaves, stems, seeds, and
flowers were found in grizzly and black bear scats in Glacier National
Park [65].

In Alberta, black bears browse on earlier phenological stages of
dandelion (spring and early summer) because of the higher nutrient
quality.  Dandelion is one of the dominant species found in spring bear
scats [52].

During prenesting through incubation of greater prairie chicken broods
(April-May) on the Sheyenne National Grasslands in North Dakota,
dandelion flowers were one of the primary diet items.  Individual fecal
samples contained up to 96 percent dandelion flowers during April and
May [106].

Dandelion is one of the favored foods of sage grouse in the spring,
summer, and fall in Nevada.  Of all meadow forbs consumed, dandelion
contributed 82 percent to spring forb diets [40,67].  

In British Columbia, deer consumed dandelion at significantly higher
(P<0.05) rates on harvested lodgepole pine sites than on unharvested
sites [28].
    


PALATABILITY : 
Dandelion is more palatable to wildlife and livestock in prebloom stages
than in postbloom stages [81].  It is poor to fair in palatability on
ponderosa pine sites throughout the West [85].

Palatability ratings for dandelion from selected western states are as
follows [37]:

                              UT     CO     WY     MT     ND
Cattle                       good   good   fair   fair   good
Sheep                        good   good   good   good   good
Horses                       good   good   fair   good   good
Elk                          good   ----   good   good   ----
Mule deer                    good   ----   good   fair   fair
White-tailed deer            ----   ----   good   fair   fair
Pronghorn                    good   ----   good   good   fair
Upland game birds            good   ----   good   good   good
Waterfowl                    fair   ----   poor   ----   good
Small nongame birds          fair   ----   fair   fair   fair
Small mammals                good   ----   fair   fair   fair


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Protein content of dandelion exceeds the minimum requirement needed for
body maintenance for deer in ponderosa pine communities [94].  Dandelion
meets the nutritional requirements of beef cattle in Alberta [16].
Protein and manganese content increase from early June to early July,
when it is harvested on ranges in Alberta.  By late September, protein
content decreases significantly [16].

Chemical composition (in percent) of dandelion from an irrigated pasture
during 1986 was as follows [16]:

                       June 3       July 7       September 24       Average

Acid detergent fiber   28.1         22.4         25.8               25.4
Crude protein          13.8         22.8         14.7               17.1
Ca                     1.21         1.55         1.61               1.46
P                      0.30         0.48         0.29               0.36
Mg                     0.31         0.47         0.50               0.43
K                      2.58         2.24         2.46               2.43


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Dandelion has low short-term and long-term revegetation potential on
disturbed sites.  Erosion-control potential is low [37].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
The Gwich'in Athabaskan Indians of Fort Yukon, Alaska frequently eat the
leaves of dandelion in salads or boil and eat them [54].  Roots of
dandelion can be ground and used as a mild laxative or to treat
heartburn.  Tea and wine can be made from flowers [140].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Dandelion is an invader species that commonly inhabits overgrazed
rangelands [85].  Dandelion availability for deer decreases on
cattle-grazed sites [7].

Dandelion meets the nutritional requirements of beef cattle and is
readily grazed by them [16].  Producers may want to control dandelion in
irrigated pastures to restrict seed movement to adjacent land where
dandelion may be undesirable [16].

Dandelion is a threat in upper forest and alpine zones of western
Montana because of its ability to invade little disturbed or undisturbed
native vegetation through seed dispersal [133].  In Montana, dandelion
seedlings compete with conifer seedlings on forest sites.  Grass seeding
on these sites will eventually decrease the dandelion population in 4 to
5 years [14].

Clearcuts and thinning of forests stimulates dandelion production.  Sage
grouse and deer populations benefit from increased production of
dandelion [10].  Sage grouse habitat loss due to development and
postdevelopment land use can be minimized by regulation of livestock on
important adjacent nondeveloped lands [10].

Dandelion can be readily controlled with 2,4-D.  It is most effective to
spray in early spring before first bloom.  Sites should not be mown for
3 to 5 days before spraying or 1 to 2 days after [92].

Strip spraying in Idaho in relatively high annual precipitation (13
inches [33 cm]) areas benefits sage grouse brood-rearing habitat due to
quick recovery of dandelion and other forbs.  Average cover of dandelion
in sprayed areas was 17.2 percent, whereas average cover in nonsprayed
areas was 11.2 percent [23].

A decrease in the population of dandelion occurs where pocket gophers
are present.  When gophers were removed, dandelion population increased
by 50 percent in 2 years on mountain grasslands and meadows of Colorado,
Utah, and Oregon [42].

Related categories for Species: Taraxacum officinale | Dandelion