Dandelion Appreciation Society

 In these strange times that we currently live in, restricted to only exercising in the very local area, it's good to pay attention to those things that sometimes we might overlook. Such as the very common wildflowers that we see every day.  Such as dandelions, which many people dislike as weeds.  However, dandelions  are a wonderful splash of colour on a dull day, have a wide range of health benefits (see for example, this article) and rabbits love them. Pollinating insects also love them. I recently discovered the Dandelion Appreciation Society on Twitter!


Our local graveyards, where we take our #DailyExercise walks, are full of dandelions!

sone of which are already turning to seed

When we are walking round the cemeteries we often see insects enjoying the dandelions:

Here's a small tortoiseshell butterfly 

This is a Syrphus sp hoverfly, a species often found on dandelions

and finally these solitary bees looks to really be enjoying the dandelions

the photo above also shows clearly some of the details of the flower-head (which is in reality made up of loads of tiny individual flowers).

So if you have dandelions in your garden, please consider keeping them for the pollinators, you may well be rewarded with some interesting visitors! 

For Nature Notes and  My Corner of the World.