Make a wish and blow! You'll send the "parachute" seeds of the dandelion into flight and destinations unknown . . . .
What to look for:

Find a fluffy white, ping-pong ball sized seed head on a dandelion plant.

Just about everyone has seen a dandelion (Taraxacum sp.) When the white globes full of fluffy white "parachute" seeds come out, let us know!

Watch in your neighborhood and around school. If you think you are the first person to see this event, ask your teacher to submit your name to the Wolf Ridge website (see table below.)

Where do dandelions grow?
Dandelions grow just about everywhere in North America today, but . . .

. . . Imagine that you lived in Minnesota back in the 1600's - you wouldn't have seen even one! Dandelions were brought to North America by Europeans who planted them in their gardens to grow as food.

How do Dandelion seeds get so fluffy?

Dandelions need lots of water to grow, but to make their fluffy flying seeds, they need to dry out.

After a few days of soaking up sunshine, a dandelion flower closes up tight for a few days. What's going on in there?

It's a bit like a caterpillar turning into butterfly. Each flower (remember, there are really hundreds on the flower head) begins to change. The tiny seed stores up food (starch) for the journey. The flower changes shape, growing a long stalk which will connect the seed to the feathery "parachute."

Then it's time to lose some weight. The seeds and parachutes dry out so they can fly into the air on the slightest breeze when the dandelion opens up again.
Cool Facts
Find all 4 stages in a dandelion flower's life on one plant . . . .
  • flower bud ready to open
  • blooming flower head
  • closed flower head preparing seeds
  • seed head
Most dandelion flowers don't even need to be pollinated by insects! As soon as the flower bud appears, the seeds are already set to ripen and fly away. This is unusual in the plant world, and helps ensure that there will be lots of new dandelion plants each year.

Dandelions are tough competitors!

  • Each plant makes hundreds of seeds which can ride the wind to new locations.
  • If you try to dig up a dandelion by the root, but you leave even a tiny bit of the root in the ground, it can re-grow into a whole new plant.
  • Dandelions also make it hard for other plants to grow around them. They do this by shading out the competition with their rosette of leaves, and by producing a chemical which other plants can't tolerate well.

Think About It!

  1. What other plants need to dry out to help their seeds travel away from the plant?
  2. Which seeds stay moist to attract animals that might eat them and help the seeds spread?
  3. Why might it help dandelions to have parachute seeds instead of plain old "grow where you drop" seeds?
  4. What other seeds can you find that travel on the wind? How are they similar to and different from the dandelion seed?
Explore the Web
Explore your way through lots of fun and easy experiments and activities from the Science Museum of Minnesota.
Solve mysteries about plants on this site for kids.
Color this detailed line drawing. See the coloring guide for some surprising details.
You'll find a wealth of beautiful and detailed drawings you can print out and color.
Find events in Minnesota and the nation, or add your own.
On-line curriculum aimed at middle or high school students.
Read details about the medicinal uses and history of the dandelion
Private collection of photos of Minnesota wildflowers.
Learn more about dandelions in this Wolf Ridge class:
Explore the world of plants! Learn about how plants live and grow, why they are so different, and how they are alike. How do plants and animals help each other? Depending on the season, you might also make foods, drinks, perfumes, or dyes from the plants you find. More about our Plant Study class.
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