broadleafperennialDifficulty

Dandelion

Taraxacum officinale

Deep taproot, yellow flower, puffball seed head. The easiest weed to fix by hand and the one most people spray for.

How to tell

•Rosette of jagged, toothed leaves flat to the ground
•Single yellow flower on a hollow stem
•White puffball seed head
•Milky sap when a stem is broken

Why it is in your lawn

Thin turf and compacted soil. Seeds blow in from anywhere; they only establish where sunlight reaches soil.

Best window

Spot treat in May when they are actively growing, and again in September when the plant is moving sugars to the root.

1 · Fix the cause

Pull with a stand-up weeder when soil is wet, taking at least 4 inches of root
Mow before puffballs form
Thicken the lawn with fall overseeding

2 · Eco product

Spray an iron HEDTA product (Fiesta or Natria Lawn Weed Killer) directly on the rosette. Leaves blacken in hours. Repeat in 3 weeks for the taproot. Pet-safe once dry.

Track the price of Iron HEDTA lawn weed killer (Natria Lawn Weed Control or Fiesta)

What you are signing up for

A lawn with 20 dandelions is a 30-minute job with a stand-up weeder. Nobody needs to spray a whole yard for them.

Reference only · what the truck would spray

Active ingredient

2,4-D + dicamba + MCPP

Typical product

Ortho Weed B Gon, Trimec, Speedzone

Why we do not recommend it

Dicamba volatilizes and drifts onto vegetables and trees, 2,4-D is a probable carcinogen per IARC, and the whole class is hard on pollinators. Iron does the same job on dandelions.

We never link to or price-track conventional herbicides. This panel exists so you understand what a service is selling you.