Discussion

One of the most disliked flowering plants in the world is the dandelion, which is ironic because it is attractive when its flowers are mature before turning to seed. Also, it is a highly nutritious, edible food plant. Nonetheless, it is frequently regarded as a weed to be eliminated.

Dandelion is the common name for the Latin genus Taraxacum that is related to asters, daisies, and sunflowers. There are many hundreds of dandelion species worldwide, mostly in Northern Hemisphere temperate zones. The British isles alone has 234 subspecies. They are tap-rooted, perennial, herbaceous plants.

The dense flower heads, called capitula, are actually dense clusters of much smaller flowers or florets that resemble petals.

Dandelion leaves are smooth and hairless. Edges are jagged, and the overall shape is arrow-like

After the flower is finished, the head dries out, the florets and stamens drop off, the bracts curve backward, and a parachute ball opens into a sphere.

Individual seeds are easily dislodged to be carried off to new locations by the wind. Scientists have discovered that the pappus, the tuft hairs attached to seeds, are uniquely shaped to trap a bubble of air that allows seeds to stay aloft much longer, aiding wider dispersal.

Each dandelion plant produces an average of 5,000 seeds. Seeds find friendly ground anywhere from sea level to 8,000 feet in elevation. Soil conditions can be wet and compact or poor and dry. Dandelions are generally pest and disease free. They are very hardy plants.

Usefulness

Dandelions have been used by humans for food and medicinal purposes for much of recorded history. They were known by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, and they have been part of traditional Chinese medicine for over a thousand years. The puritans brought dandelion stock with them on the Mayflower for its medicinal benefits.

Every part of a dandelion is edible; leaves, stems, flowers, and roots. The greens are high in calcium; iron; vitamins A, C and K; and potassium, and are low in calories. The roots are highly nutritious, too, but have a stronger flavor. Roots are used for treating cases of anemia in those with blood sugar problems, as the herb may help to balance blood sugar levels. It’s also used as a treatment for all kinds of menstrual and premenstrual difficulties including cramps, fluid retention, and breast tenderness.

Tea can be made from dried leaves or flowers. Greens are used as salad ingredients or sautéed like spinach leaves to make them more palatable. Ground, roasted roots can be a caffeine-free coffee alternative, and they are one of the ingredients of root beer. Dandelion honey can be home-made without the aid of bees. Another home-made favorite use is in dandelion wine. Patience is required. Check the web for recipes.

Artwork

Shunshō Katsukawa (1726 – 1793)

Shunshō is known mostly for his paintings of actors. For the first time in his paintings, it was possible to distinguish not only the theatrical role being portrayed but also the actor portraying that role. In this, he predated Sharaku (fl. 1793 – 1794). Though Shunshō produced many paintings, few of them were prints (ukiyo-e). He was initially a member of the Torii school, but later established his own school of art named after himself, Katsukawa. A noted pupil of his was Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849).

Kubo Shunman (1757 – 1820)

Shunman began producing artwork about 1774. His works include some ukiyo-e prints, book illustrations, paintings, illustrated novels, and poetry. He was a member of the poets' clubs Bakuro-ren and Rokujuen, and became head of Bakuro-ren. In 1790, he stopped producing commercial artwork and focused exclusively on surimono (privately commissioned, high quality prints) and poetry for prints by other artists like Hokusai, Kitagawa Utamaro (1753 – 1806), and Chōbunsai Eishi (1756 – 1829). His Hare, Dandelions, and Bracken Fern surimono was printed in 1820.

Sakai Hōitsu (1761 -1829)

The painting below was shown in week six of this semester. It is repeated here because it contains an excellent image of a dandelion.

Hōitsu was a Rinpa School artist who greatly admired the works and painting style of Tawaraya Sōtatsu (1570 - 1640) and Ogata Kōrin (1658 - 1716) and did much to revive their popularity, painting his own versions of many of their works. One of the books Hōitsu published contained woodcuts of his own work, Ōson Gafu, published in 1817. Bracken, Dandelion, Violet and Horsetails, below, was among them.

Heisai Hokuba (1771 – 1844)

Hokuba was one of the earliest and most significant pupils of Hokusai's, and one of the first to establish an independent panting style. He produced illustrations for more than 60 poetry anthologies and novels. Most of the rest of his career was mainly painting hanging scrolls and bijin-ga (beautiful people, mostly women). He accepted many private commissions to produce surimono, colorful, high-quality prints. His Two Sparrows, Dandelion, and Violets from a series titled Six Pictures of Birds and Flowers was painted sometime in the 1810 to 1820 time period.

Hooded Orioles

My demonstration painting of dandelions this week contains a pair of hooded orioles. The reason is that I wanted to do something a little different. Also, for many years, mating pairs of hooded orioles migrated up from Mexico in the spring to produce offspring. We really enjoyed watching them in our back yard. Here is a picture that we got from the web.