Dandelions are commonly eaten in salads and soups.
Dandelions spread their bright, yellow flowers throughout the lawns, parks and roadsides from spring to fall. There are plenty of fun crafts children can create from these flowers. So, get into the yard, pick a few and get crafting.
Dandelion Chains
Collect a bunch of dandelions with the stems attached. Using a fingernail or a similar tool, make a small slit along the stem large enough to pass the head of another dandelion through. Take another dandelion and thread it through the hole and continue until the chain is long enough for a bracelet, crown or necklace. Join the last dandelion to the first to complete the chain.
Pressed Dandelions
Put some dandelions between a sheet of folded baking paper. Carefully put the baking paper between the pages of a heavy book and leave for a few days. This will flatten and dry out the flower. These pressed flowers can be glued to cards or stuck between two pieces of sticky, clear film to make a bookmark.
Dandelion Painting
Dandelions can be used as paint brushes and stamps. Dip the flower head in paint and swirl it across a piece of paper. To make dandelion stamps, dip the flower head in paint and gently dab it down onto the paper. Use a new dandelion for each new paint color.
Miniature Dandelion Garden
Fill a pot with a few pebbles and fill it to half way with soil. Dig up a dandelion plant making sure to get as much of the taproot as possible. Place the dandelion upright in the pot and add more soil pressing down firmly to hold the dandelion in place. Water well and place in a sunny spot. Within a few weeks the flower should have produced more buds and more flowers will appear.
Tags: another dandelion, baking paper, flower head, flower head paint, head paint, stamps flower