True Dandelion Heirloom Herb Seeds

Grow a familiar yellow-flowered herb with a place in the kitchen as well as the garden. True Dandelion produces deeply toothed leaves in low rosettes, bright golden flowers, and a long taproot. Pick young leaves for mixed salads or lightly cooked greens, and enjoy their pleasantly bitter flavor alongside milder vegetables. This is common dandelion, Taraxacum officinale, rather than the chicory often sold as Italian dandelion.

Why Grow True Dandelion?

• Fresh garden greens: Young leaves are generally more tender and less bitter than older foliage; try them mixed with lettuce, sautéed, or in egg dishes.
• Cheerful yellow flowers: The blossoms add color to an herb bed; petals have traditional culinary uses.
• Perennial growth: Established plants can return in later seasons where conditions suit them.
• Open-pollinated heritage: Grow this traditional herb with a deliberate plan to manage its spreading seed.

Planting and Growing

Direct sow after the last spring frost, or early enough before autumn frost for seedlings to establish. Press seed onto a prepared seedbed and cover only very lightly: seed needs some light to germinate. Keep the surface consistently moist, not waterlogged. Germination can take roughly 7–21 days depending on conditions. Direct sowing is preferable if you intend to harvest straight roots.

Choose full sun to partial shade and fertile, well-drained soil. Thin to about 6–8 inches apart. For square foot gardening, use 4 plants per sq ft (thin for leaf harvest); allow more room if keeping large perennial rosettes. Water regularly during establishment and harvest clean leaves from plants grown for food.

Dandelion self-seeds readily. Remove flower heads before fluffy seed heads develop, and do not assume a raised bed will contain windblown seed. Consider a dedicated container or managed herb patch, while continuing to remove seed heads. A substantial taproot can persist after the leaves are cut.

Harvest Details

Leaf harvest: Begin when leaves are large enough to use; young leaves may be ready in roughly 40–50 days under favorable conditions.
Root harvest: Allow a longer growing period, generally at least 90 days and often a full season for larger roots.
Flavor: Pleasantly bitter, with younger leaves generally milder.
Uses: Mixed salads, cooked greens, edible flower petals, and roots traditionally dried and roasted for a coffee-style beverage.
Seeds per packet: Approximately 200 seeds / 0.15 g.
Plant type: Heirloom, open-pollinated herbaceous perennial.
Hardiness: Commonly grown in USDA zones 3–10; local conditions affect establishment and persistence.
Botanical name: Taraxacum officinale.

Pick leaves while tender, leaving enough foliage for regrowth. Wash harvests before preparing them. These seeds are offered for growing an herb crop, without promises of medicinal effects.

Packed and shipped by Box Garden Seeds LLC — heirloom seeds grown without GMOs, selected for your garden.