Habit (mature) - Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 3.0
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Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale
The familiar lawn dandelion: a low, ground-hugging rosette of jagged, deeply toothed leaves over a thick, deep taproot, throwing up hollow stalks topped by bright golden flower heads that close into the iconic white seed puffball. Here is the honest framing, because it is the whole story of this plant: Taraxacum officinale is an INTRODUCED Eurasian species, not a North American native — it has naturalized across virtually the entire continent and is treated almost everywhere as a lawn and garden weed. It spreads aggressively, scattering wind-borne seed from every puffball and regrowing from a taproot that snaps off and resprouts when you try to pull it, so it self-seeds and returns freely whether you want it to or not. But it also has real, underrated value: dandelions are one of the most important EARLY-SEASON sources of both nectar and pollen for emerging bees and other pollinators, blooming in late winter and early spring when very little else is open. And the whole plant is edible, with a long culinary and folk-medicinal history. So this is less a plant you design IN than one you decide how to live WITH — tolerate it for the pollinators, harvest it for the table, or manage it where you truly cannot have it, but know going in that you will not easily be rid of it.
Climate fit: moderate (69/100)
Pollinator
Edible
Light
Full sun
Water
Moderate water
Mature size
2-12" tall · 8" apart
Hardy in zones
3a-10b
brutally cold to mild winters
Native in Illinois
No
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Watering and irrigation
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Seed starting
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Taraxacum officinale sets seed reliably on its own because it is largely apomictic — it produces viable seed asexually, without fertilization or a pollinator partner.
Cold hardiness
Future
These values are location-based: this location's current hardiness is the baseline, and the 2050 value is a projected future climate for this same location.
Now
Zone 6b
USDA
Published baseline for this location from 1991-2020.
Source: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map 2023 (1991-2020 climatology) via ArcGIS FeatureServer
Well-suited
2050
Zone 7a
Plotwright
Projected zone for this same location in 2050 (2041-2070) using SSP3-7.0 (regional rivalry).
Well-suited
In plain terms: This location is in Zone 6b today. Its hardiness profile is cold winters, and coldest nights are typically around -3°F. By 2050, the projected hardiness zone is Zone 7a based on SSP3-7.0 (regional rivalry). That is a +0.5-zone shift from Zone 6b to Zone 7a by 2050.
✓
Well-suited today and still thriving in 2050.
Heat tolerance
Future
Heat tolerance values are location-based too: heat days today are observed at this site, and the 2050 value projects this same location under a future climate.
Loading AHS heat-zone data for this location...
Where this plant fits
Suitable across 45 ecoregions — 45 climate-resilient through 2070. Best matches first.
Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests
›
Appalachian-Blue Ridge forests
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Arizona Mountains forests
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Atlantic coastal pine barrens
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Blue Mountains forests
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California coastal sage and chaparral
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Canadian Aspen forests and parklands
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Central Pacific Northwest coastal forests
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Central Tallgrass prairie
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Central-Southern Cascades Forests
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Sources & citations
Cite this page
For lesson plans, articles, or research that uses this page. To cite a single upstream fact instead, use its specific source listed below.
Plotwright. (2026, May 17). Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). Retrieved 2026, June 14, from https://plotwright.garden/plants/taraxacum-officinale
Sources for every fact
Every fact on this page traces to a source. 18 fields cited - 18 source-backed.
NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
University extension service
Backs 17 fields
Identity
Summary
Plant type
Light
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Hardiness
Heat zone
Size
Spacing
Habit
Design roles
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