Have you ever felt that there was one thing that you really ...REALLY can't stand. John would say that the word "Hate" is too extreme to use, but I H-A-T-E dandelions. I spend hours digging those stinkin things out of my yard, only to wake up the next day to see new ones. Frankly I think those sturdy little weeds will be the straw that breaks the camels back so to say. That being my sanity!
As I was researching ways to obliterate them from my yard without using harmful chemicals I found some fun information (at essortment.com) about dandelions that made me almost think they could be a bit useful. ...Almost! I dare anyone to try one of these recipes. Enjoy!
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* A few RECIPES for the brave *
Dandelion Salad
Clean, dried dandelion greens, approx. two handfuls
Five strips of bacon, fried crisp, let cool and break apart
½ cup vinegar
Small red onion diced
¾ tsp. Sugar
In a shallow pan of boiling water, add dandelion leaves for just long enough to heat, drain off water and add remaining ingredients, only adding enough sugar to cut any remaining bitterness. It is best to experiment with the sugar. Salt and pepper may also be added to taste. Serve while still warm.
Besides salads, the greens can also be used as a sandwich ingredient alone, with a bit of salt and oleo to taste, or as a substitute for lettuce. The nutritional value of the dandelion greens is believed to include vitamins A, B, and C.
* Dandelion Folklore *
Dandelions also hold a place in superstition and folklore. If a dandelion blossom stayed open all night, it was believed to foretell of rain the following day. Sniff a dandelion, if your nose turns yellow, you are in love with a fellow, if your nose does not turn, no fellow is in love with you. It was believed good luck to carry a few (just two or three) dandelions amongst your wedding bouquet, as it would bring prosperity to the marriage in money, children, and health. It was good luck for a young woman to wear a necklace of dandelions if she made them, but not lucky if someone gave them to her. Bad luck to pick dandelions in a cemetery. Worse luck if they brought them home from a cemetery, and even worse if they gave them away after picking them in the cemetery, except to lay them on a loved one's grave. Some would rub a dandelion between their hands and rub the yellow on any spot that ached or swelled.
3 comments:
I HATE them as well! They are the bain of my exsistence. My whole backyard is covered with them, they kill the grass because of their strong roots...uggg, I hear ya tanis!
I confess that I like dandelions. I wrote a story in high school called "Dandelions Aren't Flowers Anymore" and the love of dandelions has always stayed with me because of it. I'll see if I can dig it up and I'll post it on "Become" just for you Tanis!
I treasure the dandelion bouquets that my kids bring to me daily (treasure in the sense that I am terribly happy to have them til they wilt and then I look forward to a new bouquet tomorrow) and I delight in their delight at seeing a field full of the yellow weeds! It never fails to impress them that there are dandelions EVERYWHERE!
Dandelions are a sign of good soil. Little joy comes from that knowledge when you are trying to pry their existence from the earth. I can handle dandelions but detest chickweed!
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