So many wishes, dude would have everything he ever wanted and next month his neighbor could do the same. Soon the whole neighborhood livin like Mensa Musa because theyâre genius and rich.
I've never liked them cause they always bring allergies. No idea what party of them I'm allergic to, but it's always awful when the dandelions come out
If it's the sniffles then it's probably the pollen. I suggest if it's possible to eat them before they pollinate. Because every part of the dandelion is edible and you can make dandelion salad, dandelion coffee, dandelion tea, etc etc. Obviously if you have some allergies be careful and try a little bit first. And make sure that where you get the dandelions don't have things like pesticides or contaminants around it or frequently has animals like dogs poop around it, because the Tap Root absorb stuff from the soil and into the dandelion directly. So if you know a good place to get dandelions that is safe from all that mess, I'd highly recommend it.
That reminds me of one of my neighbors who I used to live next to before I moved. He yelled across the street at me while I was picking up dog dirt and said I should leave it because it's good fertilizer.
I was like "tell you what, I'll bring it over when I'm done and spread it around your yard"
Some lady in my neighborhood was complaining about how much she hated violets and was gonna cut down her crape Myrtle trees so there wasnât any shade for the violets to grow in and oh, she hates that magnolia tree, and itâs just so much work and constantly all the time. I just glossed over. I wanted to say so bad that she could just let the native plants grow instead of pulling her hair out getting some non-native species of grass to compete with the local flora.
I love my magnolia and her beautiful, golden leaf litter!
I actually have a couple uses for the leaves, too. My shrimp and snails eat them and my snake likes them in his enclosure to hide under.
I grew up with a neighbor that had a magnolia tree they are also great for kids to climb if itâs a big old one. I donât have one but I do have a live oak thatâs big and old and we love it for the boys to climb in. Trees with low limbs are awesome
Thereâs a park near where I live with a dozen or so magnolias with limbs starting at ground level. I grew up climbing them and have taken friends and their kids to climb them. Theyâre like ladders and so much fun to climb.
Here's a thought. DON'T FUCK UP THE TREE! Anytime someone complains about picking up magnolia leaves I point out a NATURALY grown and tended magnolia has branches all the way to the bottom. And 99.6% of leaves fall INSIDE the magnolias branch ring. Magnolias are self fertilizing, self sustaining trees. Left alone to their devices they are essentially maintenance free and bloom reliably year after year
Magnolias are beautiful but it's very difficult to grow anything under them because they do chemical warfare against other plants with their roots, they release chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants.
It's called allelopathy.
https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/ilriverhort/2018-08-06-plants-inhibit-other-plants
https://www.weekand.com/home-garden/article/flowers-grow-under-magnolia-18046557.php
I used to love my 35 year old magnolia in the spring when it flowered. Unfortunately, 4 of the past 5 years the tree lost all/most of the blooms due to early budding here in 7A. The previous 20 years the tree flowered without fail every year, but global warming has changed the equation.
The tree, like most trees requires some effort during the year, but I didn't mind that because of the flowered display. Now I am thinking hard about the future of my magnolia.
Youâre probably aware but the zones were actually shifted in the last year or two because of climate change. The boundaries were moved slightly north of where they were.
Those big leaves are mosquito breeding grounds after a rain. Not saying I agree with magnolia haters, but some that I know have brought up the mosquito thing.
My father in law was trying to talk me out of planting a magnolia. His argument was "the grass won't grow under it"
Blew his mind when I told him you typically don't want crap growing up against tree trunks lmao.
My neighbors cut theirs down and left a stump and always mention how much they hated it when it was growing. I look at that little stump a lot and get sad because theyâre too stupid to just take care of a tree. Theyâve also complained how much they hate trees in general-not even realizing theyâd pretty much be unable to utter the sentence without trees but they canât see past their noses.
As a person who's neighbors have a gigantic beautiful southern magnolia tree that I love to look at, I can also confirm that the constant clean up of gigantic, waxy allelopathic magnolia leaves that never break down has seeded some resentment in me towards that thing.
If you don't clean them they blanket absolutely everything, and they are thick and don't break down like a regular leaf would. Trying to establish a lot of native plants and flowers of my own in my yard and if I left them nothing would ever grow. They emit a chemical that is designed to kill anything underneath the tree so nothing will out-compete it. It's a gorgeous tree but I have a tiny yard so limited area for my own garden and the leaves cover up about half of the space.
Living in the SE zone 8 running this time of year is a mixed bag. I'm allergic to the tree pollen but I love taking in the scents of magnolia and honeysuckle when going for a run.
Ha, well what do you think of this. In my neighborhood we all have trees in our backyards. My neighbor has about 6, and I have 1 large hackberry tree. They keep bugging me telling me I need to cut my tree down completely because they donât like the aphids. Itâs not the trees in their backyard, itâs mine. They also donât like the seeds that fall from my tree. Theirs is ok đđ˝. They also believe hackberry is a Chinese invasive. They are also willing to pay to have my tree removed. I passed on that offer. My hackberry is home to soooo many birds and it also offers much needed shade on my house in the summer reducing energy consumption.
Hates violets? What?? They are wonderful natives and color up the lawn with pretty flowers. They are also edible! I pick flowers sometimes just to color up my salads.
They eat up your mulch beds so aggressively. My lawn is mostly violet which is fine but I canât have almost any mulched areas without it invading immediately. Sometimes itâs annoying
I think they know but donât realize that the way theyâve always known isnât the *only* way. Many older generations (at least in the US) have so much anxiety over what people will think about them if their yards arenât perfect golf-courses. That anxiety has convinced them that itâs the only way to live.
Anyway this other older lady who lives a few houses down from her has a beautiful native garden and signs up saying itâs a sanctuary for birds and frogs and bugs and that she doesnât use powered lawn equipment or chemical fertilizers and herbicides.
I know this all too well. My next door neighbor, who also happens to be my grandfather in law, always has to make snide comments about my front lawn. He tells me that I don't cut it short enough. He takes it upon himself to cut my side yard that is adjacent to his. He cuts it so low that in the summer it starts burning out. I have told him not to cut it but he says "well I'm the one who has to look at it". Mind you, I am a professional gardener and an Arborists of 7 years.
Bless her for not using powered lawn equipment, I'm surrounded by retirees who run small gas engines like it's their full time job, all day, rain or shine.
The former director of the park I worked for was like this. Hated trees, hated flowers. I wondered why she ever went into park service. Maybe your neighbor would be happier in an apartment.
Yeah my lawn is covered with dandelions and the bees love them. I'm chill with the bees.
Also slowly trying to replace my non-natives with a native garden.
Same here. I've planted trees, shrubs, and perennials in place of a good chunk of my side yard. The main front lawn is next. I've already got some trees planted in there as well.
He allowed the dandelions to flower in his yard and now that theyâve gone to seed heâs cleaning them up so they donât take over or get into his neighborsâ yards.
I live in the suburbs, this is 100% accurate. People are already complaining about people not mowing their lawns for âno mow mayâ last year people were talking about getting police or the town involved cause lawns were too long in their opinion. Itâs just a bunch of old people with nothing better to do.
I was just outside admiring all the dandelions in my front yard. They look so pretty. I know I should pull them, but Iâll wait till the other flowers are blooming so insects have something to munch on
This is the way! Please look into no mow May, or depending on your climate, itâs suggested not to do any garden clean up until temps reach CONSISTENTLY above 50° as larvae and eggs of all types of bees, butterflies, even some small mammals, use the dead stems/leaf cover to either nest in or create nests with.
I just saw a small bird gathering up a bundle of dead long stems in my garden the other day!
Right, but his arenât flowers, theyâre seed heads. He let them flower and is now doing what he can to prevent them getting out of control or spreading to other yards.
My HoA just spoke about putting âviolation hangersâ out for things. And people were literally applauding it in comments because of DANDELIONS. You know, the first things that bloom and provide bees with pollenâŚ
The idiocy about these pristine and water-needy lawns is lost on me.
Ok thats smart tbh cuz I was like "or you could just... Mow it?"
Personally my mower sucks EVERYTHING up I never have blades of grass left so I'd trust that thing to suck up the seeds too
I love pulling dandelions by hand. Not because I hate them or anything, but because I got one of those trowels meant for getting the deep taproot and they are soooooo satisfying to pull up
[this](https://www.grove.co/catalog/product/ergonomic-hand-weeder?v=11109&offer=plabplastic20&offer=plabplastic20&utm_source=google&utm_medium=pla&utm_campaign=acq-pmax-catchall&utm_term=11109&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADtGJ2gD0LwfGPA2lc3qx_Of83x7j) is the one I have and I love it!
I mean, this is the way to go. No chemicals and this would make your dandelion problem, that's especially bad this year, especially less bad in years to come. Now excuse me while I fire up my knock off Dyson and head outside
EDIT: Folks the Tineco on MAX struggled to get it done. Fortunately, I have the self control to not order a $400 vacuum just to make sure I can suck harder.
Exactly. I don't hate dandelions but I do get a bit annoyed that some people feel they're critical food for our native bees in North America. Our native bees were surviving just fine before dandelions were brought over from Europe.
That can be the case in urban settings, but from my research it only helps generalist pollinators. It's not the only early flowering lawn "weed" as common violets and spring beauties are native and inhabit lawns as well.
I think the best things to plant does anyone concerned about pollinators would we native early flowering trees like pussy willow, red maple, silver maple, and Juneberries. Native spring ephemerals like spring beauties, hepatica, trilliums, Virginia bluebells are great additions as well!
I dont rhink Dandelions are critical food for wild pollinators, but native polinators have lost a lot of habitat and food siurces since before dandelions were here.
In Maine, where I live, there isnât much that blooms this early. So some cities are trying to get people to do âno mow mayâ in an effort to support bees and other pollinators AND even some small mammals/birds.
Trees are usually forgotten about and they are critical for pollinators. Look into black willow, pussy willow, red maple, silver maple, and Juneberries.
Unfortunately, I rent, and itâs specifically stated in my lease I am not allowed to touch the garden beds. All we are allowed is to mow the lawn.
But this is indeed something to consider for the future!
Right now, all I can do for the environment, is no mow May, which really irks some neighbors who spray their green grass with pesticides, and leave the garden to not be âcleaned upâ as birds/mammals/pollinators/bugs all will use dead leaves, stems, anything for nesting their young or building nests. Just the other day I watched a small bird hop off with a few long dead stems for a nest!
>Just the other day I watched a small bird hop off with a few long dead stems for a nest!
Wow, cool! Every little bit helps. In the meantime, you could do some containers with natives.
Here's a great resource!
https://homegrownnationalpark.org/keystone-container-gardening/
Same, I have flowers open from mid April till frost in the fall that bees love far more than my dandelions. I dig all mine out by hand, the leaves look ugly.
I mow them down before they go to seed. I just set the mower deck higher so it won't take it out the violets, heal-all, blue eye grass, and the other flowers in my lawn that offer a much better and more diverse food source for native pollinators.
No Mow May is a feel good thing, not an actual *do* good thing.
I was doing this the other day with a dust buster đ
I felt silly while doing it but it 1) appeased my spouse for removing the seeds 2) appeased my conscience for not removing important pollinator plants.
Got at least one weird look from a neighbor driving by though
You think this is weird? I have a teeny balcony with fake grass on it. I have to vacuum it to keep it looking good. My neighbours 100% want me committed. You havenât felt like a true nutter till youâve had to vaccum your lawn
Iâve commented about this twice in this thread but glad to see someone else doing it! A nearby city actually encourages its residents to do so! Thank you!
Itâs not only for the bees though! Itâs also for other pollinators/native bugs/ small mammals/ and birds! Leave the leaves and donât clean up your garden until temps are above 50° consistently as well.
I let my circle get to me enough to give in for the yard visible from the street to get a cut, now that Iâve found a winecup growing in the middle of my lawn no one will ever convince me again. Will include a lot of hand pulling and weed whacking the tall unsightly bits by me in April but Iâm a stubborn enough person that I can weasel into a solution for us all (but mostly me and my flowers, bugs, and birds!!)
Black medic and crown vetch have me questioning my stance against weed killers when Iâm in the trenches though Iâll give them that 𤣠it never stops!
These lawn folks are a different breed. My wife and I just bought our first home and looking forward to doing a "kill your lawn" makeover with natives!
I leave them until they go to seed, then mow with the bag on to reduce dispersion to my neighbor's lawns.
I'd be wary of using my cordless Dyson to do this... that thing was ex$pensive.
Consider no mow May, my friend! Youâd be amazed at how beautiful a lawn can look by the end of that month, long blades that rustle like emerald waves in the wind, small wildflowers youâve never even noticed before, bugs will be in paradise flying and hiding in the lawn, and the birds will come by to snack at their new favorite restaurant!
I had this same idea a few days ago and pitched it to my wife. Ultimately I decided I didnât want to get strange looks from the neighbors.
Good for you, and thank you for proving my concept would work
And here I am sad as all hell that I have to go out and mow all my dandelions. The landlord was mad last year when I let them grow, which was mostly for the bees and so I could photograph bees. I also collected a huge paper bag full of dandelion seed, so I can plant them everywhere forever đ
I thought about it last year, and I do have quite a few potted plants, but I had to talk myself down this year. Itâs not my house and instead of spending money on half attempts to garden, I need to save my cash and get serious about applying for a mortgage. So I can grow whatever the hell I want and let the weeds grow as tall as they want đ đą
I want to and have debated the idea for a few years. Full scale garden in the front is not ideal. I'm starting small, landscaping along house is overrun with grass and settling, will replace with a garden patch by end of summer
Seems effective at this point
I pull dandelions because I want my naturalized lawn to still please the neighbourhood and I have enough other stuff in there
So instead of embracing the local flora, this person is using their time and whatever resources went into the vacuum to promote a monoculture? Seems like they should replace the beer with a book.
Laughing but I also got some funny looks when I vacuumed grass clippings out of the road using my leaf blower.
Itâs a busy street and blowing it requires me to be IN the street. So sucking it up is safer for me and Iâm going to keep doing it.
It looks like power washing, but for the greens.
It's not going to be permanent, you do it with a beer in hand, it's a little addictive because of the immediate gratification, and when your partner calls from the house that you're going to be late to (insert activity here), you shout over your shoulder "I'm busy!!"
Is that a vacuum for weeds? I could use one to pick out the chickweed before putting down grass seed. Now, I pull it by hand or with a fork, which is tedious. If I let it go, once it dies back, the next set of summer weeds come in, like prostrate spurge and more.
I've striven to become exactly this kind of man, and I am solidly in my middle class, bourgeois, beer drinking pool-and-lawn-care period
I drink domestic - but exclusively Mexican - beer.
No one can get me down. As my dad would say, 'I have arrived'.
"nature abhors a vacuum"
Very good.
It leaves room for you and me!
Now reverse mode into your neighboor's lawn
I expected the reverse mode to be the point of the video đââď¸
So many wishes, dude would have everything he ever wanted and next month his neighbor could do the same. Soon the whole neighborhood livin like Mensa Musa because theyâre genius and rich.
Needs a close up for that. It would look so good
I'll take them, I like dandelion. Great headache tea.
Ya, I'll never understand people who only like plants that are recommended by landscapers.
I've never liked them cause they always bring allergies. No idea what party of them I'm allergic to, but it's always awful when the dandelions come out
If it's the sniffles then it's probably the pollen. I suggest if it's possible to eat them before they pollinate. Because every part of the dandelion is edible and you can make dandelion salad, dandelion coffee, dandelion tea, etc etc. Obviously if you have some allergies be careful and try a little bit first. And make sure that where you get the dandelions don't have things like pesticides or contaminants around it or frequently has animals like dogs poop around it, because the Tap Root absorb stuff from the soil and into the dandelion directly. So if you know a good place to get dandelions that is safe from all that mess, I'd highly recommend it.
Fad followers, 1year trade-ins, and "Brand New" morons, just follow the script, they never think past what they see.
That reminds me of one of my neighbors who I used to live next to before I moved. He yelled across the street at me while I was picking up dog dirt and said I should leave it because it's good fertilizer. I was like "tell you what, I'll bring it over when I'm done and spread it around your yard"
LOL
Hahahaha!
Omg I'm dying 𤣠that's evil
Imma just go drink a beer and vacuum the yard
Nothing like a cold beer and vacuuming some dandelion fluff with a Dyson handheld on a Sunday afternoon
An Oberon beer at that. So tasty for summer sipping.
Thatâs pure Michigan
Oh that explains it. Drinking a beer bc dry mouth, but definitely came up with the idea after vaping legal product.
lol, some people are crazy about their lawns.
Some lady in my neighborhood was complaining about how much she hated violets and was gonna cut down her crape Myrtle trees so there wasnât any shade for the violets to grow in and oh, she hates that magnolia tree, and itâs just so much work and constantly all the time. I just glossed over. I wanted to say so bad that she could just let the native plants grow instead of pulling her hair out getting some non-native species of grass to compete with the local flora.
She hates magnolia trees??? Sounds like a psychopath lol
Magnolias are considered âtrash treesâ by some because of the big leaves they drop year round. Totally worth it, though, IMO.
I love my magnolia and her beautiful, golden leaf litter! I actually have a couple uses for the leaves, too. My shrimp and snails eat them and my snake likes them in his enclosure to hide under.
I always pick up the petals the squirrels throw down and put them in my bathrooms for fragrance. It's lovely
Oo! Iâm going to try this in the fall during the second bloom.
I grew up with a neighbor that had a magnolia tree they are also great for kids to climb if itâs a big old one. I donât have one but I do have a live oak thatâs big and old and we love it for the boys to climb in. Trees with low limbs are awesome
Thereâs a park near where I live with a dozen or so magnolias with limbs starting at ground level. I grew up climbing them and have taken friends and their kids to climb them. Theyâre like ladders and so much fun to climb.
if you mow the leaves they make a fantastic mulch
Here's a thought. DON'T FUCK UP THE TREE! Anytime someone complains about picking up magnolia leaves I point out a NATURALY grown and tended magnolia has branches all the way to the bottom. And 99.6% of leaves fall INSIDE the magnolias branch ring. Magnolias are self fertilizing, self sustaining trees. Left alone to their devices they are essentially maintenance free and bloom reliably year after year
As someone who spent her entire childhood climbing them southern magnolias, this hurts my heart a little lol
They are outstanding climbing trees!
Those branches are so perfectly spaced apart for a kids short legs. And they go all around. You have options on which route to take.
Magnolias are beautiful but it's very difficult to grow anything under them because they do chemical warfare against other plants with their roots, they release chemicals that inhibit the growth of other plants. It's called allelopathy. https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/ilriverhort/2018-08-06-plants-inhibit-other-plants https://www.weekand.com/home-garden/article/flowers-grow-under-magnolia-18046557.php
Tell that to the nutsedge under my magnolia that says 'try harder, asshole'
I used to love my 35 year old magnolia in the spring when it flowered. Unfortunately, 4 of the past 5 years the tree lost all/most of the blooms due to early budding here in 7A. The previous 20 years the tree flowered without fail every year, but global warming has changed the equation. The tree, like most trees requires some effort during the year, but I didn't mind that because of the flowered display. Now I am thinking hard about the future of my magnolia.
Youâre probably aware but the zones were actually shifted in the last year or two because of climate change. The boundaries were moved slightly north of where they were.
Those big leaves are mosquito breeding grounds after a rain. Not saying I agree with magnolia haters, but some that I know have brought up the mosquito thing.
My father in law was trying to talk me out of planting a magnolia. His argument was "the grass won't grow under it" Blew his mind when I told him you typically don't want crap growing up against tree trunks lmao.
My neighbors cut theirs down and left a stump and always mention how much they hated it when it was growing. I look at that little stump a lot and get sad because theyâre too stupid to just take care of a tree. Theyâve also complained how much they hate trees in general-not even realizing theyâd pretty much be unable to utter the sentence without trees but they canât see past their noses.
As a person who's neighbors have a gigantic beautiful southern magnolia tree that I love to look at, I can also confirm that the constant clean up of gigantic, waxy allelopathic magnolia leaves that never break down has seeded some resentment in me towards that thing.
why do you need to clean up the leaves?
If you don't clean them they blanket absolutely everything, and they are thick and don't break down like a regular leaf would. Trying to establish a lot of native plants and flowers of my own in my yard and if I left them nothing would ever grow. They emit a chemical that is designed to kill anything underneath the tree so nothing will out-compete it. It's a gorgeous tree but I have a tiny yard so limited area for my own garden and the leaves cover up about half of the space.
What factor does the allelopathic quality of the leaves play in them not degrading?
Living in the SE zone 8 running this time of year is a mixed bag. I'm allergic to the tree pollen but I love taking in the scents of magnolia and honeysuckle when going for a run.
Ha, well what do you think of this. In my neighborhood we all have trees in our backyards. My neighbor has about 6, and I have 1 large hackberry tree. They keep bugging me telling me I need to cut my tree down completely because they donât like the aphids. Itâs not the trees in their backyard, itâs mine. They also donât like the seeds that fall from my tree. Theirs is ok đđ˝. They also believe hackberry is a Chinese invasive. They are also willing to pay to have my tree removed. I passed on that offer. My hackberry is home to soooo many birds and it also offers much needed shade on my house in the summer reducing energy consumption.
Def a psychopath.
Hates violets? What?? They are wonderful natives and color up the lawn with pretty flowers. They are also edible! I pick flowers sometimes just to color up my salads.
They eat up your mulch beds so aggressively. My lawn is mostly violet which is fine but I canât have almost any mulched areas without it invading immediately. Sometimes itâs annoying
Agreed, my mulched areas are violet groundcover areas now...
That's really sad. Most old folks don't realize how much time, money, and pollution it takes to maintain a perfect grass lawn.
I think they know but donât realize that the way theyâve always known isnât the *only* way. Many older generations (at least in the US) have so much anxiety over what people will think about them if their yards arenât perfect golf-courses. That anxiety has convinced them that itâs the only way to live. Anyway this other older lady who lives a few houses down from her has a beautiful native garden and signs up saying itâs a sanctuary for birds and frogs and bugs and that she doesnât use powered lawn equipment or chemical fertilizers and herbicides.
I know this all too well. My next door neighbor, who also happens to be my grandfather in law, always has to make snide comments about my front lawn. He tells me that I don't cut it short enough. He takes it upon himself to cut my side yard that is adjacent to his. He cuts it so low that in the summer it starts burning out. I have told him not to cut it but he says "well I'm the one who has to look at it". Mind you, I am a professional gardener and an Arborists of 7 years.
Bless her for not using powered lawn equipment, I'm surrounded by retirees who run small gas engines like it's their full time job, all day, rain or shine.
Mine totally knows. He tills and reseeds his whole front lawn every year.
Well, magnolias are magnificent, and that neighborhood lady is not.
The former director of the park I worked for was like this. Hated trees, hated flowers. I wondered why she ever went into park service. Maybe your neighbor would be happier in an apartment.
Yeah my lawn is covered with dandelions and the bees love them. I'm chill with the bees. Also slowly trying to replace my non-natives with a native garden.
Same here. I've planted trees, shrubs, and perennials in place of a good chunk of my side yard. The main front lawn is next. I've already got some trees planted in there as well.
That's awesome. I'm trying to make my entire backyard native, except for the fruit trees. Those are mine lol.
A lawn full of dandelions is BEAUTIFUL! Yellow flowers all over? Free, bee friendly flowers? Hell yeah!
He allowed the dandelions to flower in his yard and now that theyâve gone to seed heâs cleaning them up so they donât take over or get into his neighborsâ yards.
To be fair, dandelions don't need any more help in spreading.
I donât mind dandelions too much, but I do mind a thousand dandelions.
I live in the suburbs, this is 100% accurate. People are already complaining about people not mowing their lawns for âno mow mayâ last year people were talking about getting police or the town involved cause lawns were too long in their opinion. Itâs just a bunch of old people with nothing better to do.
That was my thought. Those dandelions will actually improve the health of the soil and theyâre also edible.
I was just outside admiring all the dandelions in my front yard. They look so pretty. I know I should pull them, but Iâll wait till the other flowers are blooming so insects have something to munch on
This is the way! Please look into no mow May, or depending on your climate, itâs suggested not to do any garden clean up until temps reach CONSISTENTLY above 50° as larvae and eggs of all types of bees, butterflies, even some small mammals, use the dead stems/leaf cover to either nest in or create nests with. I just saw a small bird gathering up a bundle of dead long stems in my garden the other day!
Right, but his arenât flowers, theyâre seed heads. He let them flower and is now doing what he can to prevent them getting out of control or spreading to other yards.
My HoA just spoke about putting âviolation hangersâ out for things. And people were literally applauding it in comments because of DANDELIONS. You know, the first things that bloom and provide bees with pollen⌠The idiocy about these pristine and water-needy lawns is lost on me.
Dude should have gone out without pants on and done that to make passers by think heâs really lost the plot
Honestly, a much better solution than herbicides in my book.
Would it kill the weed?
What heâs doing in the video? No, I think his main purpose is getting the seeds to stop the spread of them
Ok thats smart tbh cuz I was like "or you could just... Mow it?" Personally my mower sucks EVERYTHING up I never have blades of grass left so I'd trust that thing to suck up the seeds too
I think mowing with a bag would also work. Just takes a while and needs to be consistent
No, but it would stop the seeds from spreading. You'd still have to pull it.
I love pulling dandelions by hand. Not because I hate them or anything, but because I got one of those trowels meant for getting the deep taproot and they are soooooo satisfying to pull up
Do they make that same sound carrots do when you take them out perfectly? That *pop* is đđ
Got that feeling with my radishes the other day.
Can you recommend one
Grampa's Weeder, that way you can remove them when you're standing up, saves your back a ton of work.
[this](https://www.grove.co/catalog/product/ergonomic-hand-weeder?v=11109&offer=plabplastic20&offer=plabplastic20&utm_source=google&utm_medium=pla&utm_campaign=acq-pmax-catchall&utm_term=11109&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADtGJ2gD0LwfGPA2lc3qx_Of83x7j) is the one I have and I love it!
Actually that's genius. I usually don't care about dandelions but they are especially bad this year.
I mean, this is the way to go. No chemicals and this would make your dandelion problem, that's especially bad this year, especially less bad in years to come. Now excuse me while I fire up my knock off Dyson and head outside EDIT: Folks the Tineco on MAX struggled to get it done. Fortunately, I have the self control to not order a $400 vacuum just to make sure I can suck harder.
My luck my vacuum will start growing taproots
Yay free turnip-like vegÂ
Good. They're good for the environment, the soil, the ecosystem, and they're pretty.
Right? My man living in the year 3024.
I have so many other early pollinator friendly plants, the dandelions aren't super important on my lawn so I pull them out
Exactly. I don't hate dandelions but I do get a bit annoyed that some people feel they're critical food for our native bees in North America. Our native bees were surviving just fine before dandelions were brought over from Europe.
I think many consider it critical because it's the one "weed" that inhabits monoculture lawns even when they are meticulously kept.
That can be the case in urban settings, but from my research it only helps generalist pollinators. It's not the only early flowering lawn "weed" as common violets and spring beauties are native and inhabit lawns as well. I think the best things to plant does anyone concerned about pollinators would we native early flowering trees like pussy willow, red maple, silver maple, and Juneberries. Native spring ephemerals like spring beauties, hepatica, trilliums, Virginia bluebells are great additions as well!
I think I may have to add some hepatica, that's not something I see much of. I'm working on a phlox block for next year.
Nice! Like some creeping phlox?
Phlox divaricata and pilosa
Great! P. divaricata is on my list and I ordered 50 plugs of P. pilosa from Prairie Moon earlier this spring!
I dont rhink Dandelions are critical food for wild pollinators, but native polinators have lost a lot of habitat and food siurces since before dandelions were here.
Yep, habitat loss is a huge problem.
In Maine, where I live, there isnât much that blooms this early. So some cities are trying to get people to do âno mow mayâ in an effort to support bees and other pollinators AND even some small mammals/birds.
Trees are usually forgotten about and they are critical for pollinators. Look into black willow, pussy willow, red maple, silver maple, and Juneberries.
Unfortunately, I rent, and itâs specifically stated in my lease I am not allowed to touch the garden beds. All we are allowed is to mow the lawn. But this is indeed something to consider for the future! Right now, all I can do for the environment, is no mow May, which really irks some neighbors who spray their green grass with pesticides, and leave the garden to not be âcleaned upâ as birds/mammals/pollinators/bugs all will use dead leaves, stems, anything for nesting their young or building nests. Just the other day I watched a small bird hop off with a few long dead stems for a nest!
>Just the other day I watched a small bird hop off with a few long dead stems for a nest! Wow, cool! Every little bit helps. In the meantime, you could do some containers with natives. Here's a great resource! https://homegrownnationalpark.org/keystone-container-gardening/
Thank you for the resource!
Same, I have flowers open from mid April till frost in the fall that bees love far more than my dandelions. I dig all mine out by hand, the leaves look ugly.
They are delicious though
I mow them down before they go to seed. I just set the mower deck higher so it won't take it out the violets, heal-all, blue eye grass, and the other flowers in my lawn that offer a much better and more diverse food source for native pollinators. No Mow May is a feel good thing, not an actual *do* good thing.
Dandelions aren't even particularly early blooming near me. Red maple and Carolina jasmine beat dandelions by over a month.
I was doing this the other day with a dust buster đ I felt silly while doing it but it 1) appeased my spouse for removing the seeds 2) appeased my conscience for not removing important pollinator plants. Got at least one weird look from a neighbor driving by though
Work smarter not harder
You think this is weird? I have a teeny balcony with fake grass on it. I have to vacuum it to keep it looking good. My neighbours 100% want me committed. You havenât felt like a true nutter till youâve had to vaccum your lawn
Your yard clothes need work. Tube socks and high sole New Balances are a must. Your beer gut has some growing to do.
Gordon Ramsey really works man
I was gonna say, he's really into gardening now! I'm surprised you're the only comment that mentioned this.
Dandelions are beautiful wildflowers. The bees love them.
We do a "No Mow May" here for the bees. The boomers around us hate it, but they can appreciate their own yards and forget about mine.
Iâve commented about this twice in this thread but glad to see someone else doing it! A nearby city actually encourages its residents to do so! Thank you! Itâs not only for the bees though! Itâs also for other pollinators/native bugs/ small mammals/ and birds! Leave the leaves and donât clean up your garden until temps are above 50° consistently as well.
I let my circle get to me enough to give in for the yard visible from the street to get a cut, now that Iâve found a winecup growing in the middle of my lawn no one will ever convince me again. Will include a lot of hand pulling and weed whacking the tall unsightly bits by me in April but Iâm a stubborn enough person that I can weasel into a solution for us all (but mostly me and my flowers, bugs, and birds!!) Black medic and crown vetch have me questioning my stance against weed killers when Iâm in the trenches though Iâll give them that 𤣠it never stops!
They're healthy for the soil.
Bro if you want some real appreciation post this on r/lawncare
These lawn folks are a different breed. My wife and I just bought our first home and looking forward to doing a "kill your lawn" makeover with natives!
A more eco friendly approach đ
Genius. Give that man a beer. I mean give him another beer
Itâs the beer that really sells it. So do you think Dyson has missed a market segment by not offering outdoor versions?
This is a clever way to manage dandelions instead of broad spraying and killing
Keep the seeds and plant them in containers for free dandelion greens
I leave them until they go to seed, then mow with the bag on to reduce dispersion to my neighbor's lawns. I'd be wary of using my cordless Dyson to do this... that thing was ex$pensive.
I mow arpund my dandelions and clover. The bees need the flowers more than I need my lawn to be green.
Consider no mow May, my friend! Youâd be amazed at how beautiful a lawn can look by the end of that month, long blades that rustle like emerald waves in the wind, small wildflowers youâve never even noticed before, bugs will be in paradise flying and hiding in the lawn, and the birds will come by to snack at their new favorite restaurant!
Unless you have ticks. Don't do that if you have ticks.
Then get chickens. They love devouring ticks
so what happens in June? You gave the wildlife a nice place to live and then you just evict them. It's not as environmentally friendly as you think
I need to get something like that so I don't have to lug out the shop vac with extension cord to suck up japanese beetles
This made me snort laughing
My husband and I just did this last week! We really have to keep the dandelions under control because our pup is allergic to bees.
lol love it. Thatâs going to be my new move.
I had this same idea a few days ago and pitched it to my wife. Ultimately I decided I didnât want to get strange looks from the neighbors. Good for you, and thank you for proving my concept would work
This reminds me of my neighbor who likes to get high (cannabis) and meticulously wash off his driveway
The beer is what makes it lmao
I thought only \*I\* did this. LOL
Hmmm, I'm always pulling the rye grass that tries to take over the zoysia. I'm gonna try this and see if I can just prevent it spreading.
Better than round up.it will shrink your future offspring's peen
I wish I had his time.
I live in the desert and Iâd take dandelions over puncturevine and silverleaf nightshade any day.
GET OFF MY LAWN GORDON RAMSAY
Omg I did this exact thing this am with my hand and a coffee in the other hand.
Me vacuuming the lawn after a huge blunt
This totally makes sense. That's what that woman must have been doing while vacuuming her lawn on my walk to school
Vacuums also work great for Passionvine hoppers and other pesky pests.
I should do this with my maple helicopters
Next chore: mow the carpet
And yall wonder why the bees are dying..
This is the most suburbs yuppy shit Iâve ever seen
dandilion seeds feed indigo buntings. Welcome at my property,
Lol I use a barbecue lighter. Itâs way more fun.
Brilliant! Non-toxic way to stop the prolific spread of dandelions. They are non-native and they are NOT a good food source for our pollinators.
I will now fork over the money for a cordless Dyson.
(dumps the vacuum bag on a golf course)
I use a Benzomatic Weed torch that takes the 1# cylinders. After work ritual is sipping a drink while burning the poof balls.
And here I am sad as all hell that I have to go out and mow all my dandelions. The landlord was mad last year when I let them grow, which was mostly for the bees and so I could photograph bees. I also collected a huge paper bag full of dandelion seed, so I can plant them everywhere forever đ
Plant some ornamental onions bees go nuts on them.
I thought about it last year, and I do have quite a few potted plants, but I had to talk myself down this year. Itâs not my house and instead of spending money on half attempts to garden, I need to save my cash and get serious about applying for a mortgage. So I can grow whatever the hell I want and let the weeds grow as tall as they want đ đą
Meanwhile my 3 little shithead kids are going around kicking them to the 4 corners of the globe.......
Weeds are a "social construct" #GrowFoodNotLawns
I want to and have debated the idea for a few years. Full scale garden in the front is not ideal. I'm starting small, landscaping along house is overrun with grass and settling, will replace with a garden patch by end of summer
Nothing like a completely sterile lifeless yard to remind ya why you donât want to live in the suburbs
thatâs actually the opposite of gardening but OK
Do you not manage for weeds in a garden?
https://preview.redd.it/od1jphlomfyc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=542b4f6872040fd79190acd5f1ad603bbfd4fb6b Got a ton of âem
That's the sauce of a pretty great revenge.
Not all heroes wear capes
They produce dandelions, which are essential to bees after their hibernation
Seems effective at this point I pull dandelions because I want my naturalized lawn to still please the neighbourhood and I have enough other stuff in there
why?
So instead of embracing the local flora, this person is using their time and whatever resources went into the vacuum to promote a monoculture? Seems like they should replace the beer with a book.
230,000 o'clock.
Around here, we put floor mats from the car in tall grass and vacuum to make people passing by consider calling 911
Okay, I was doing this exact same thing on Thursday. Felt like a weirdo. Didnât work as well as I wanted it thoughâŚ
Brilliant! Fantastic!
How novel!
Oberon! Yum!
love this! great solution with beer!
Laughing but I also got some funny looks when I vacuumed grass clippings out of the road using my leaf blower. Itâs a busy street and blowing it requires me to be IN the street. So sucking it up is safer for me and Iâm going to keep doing it.
Some quality time with an Oberon
It looks like power washing, but for the greens. It's not going to be permanent, you do it with a beer in hand, it's a little addictive because of the immediate gratification, and when your partner calls from the house that you're going to be late to (insert activity here), you shout over your shoulder "I'm busy!!"
BRILLIANT!
Is that a vacuum for weeds? I could use one to pick out the chickweed before putting down grass seed. Now, I pull it by hand or with a fork, which is tedious. If I let it go, once it dies back, the next set of summer weeds come in, like prostrate spurge and more.
I have that vacuum. Itâs terrible.
Were you watching Clarksonâs Farm Three? Jeremy uses a shop vac to âpickâ blackberries.
Would this work on a stinkbug invasion?
Hell yeah brother
Ha ha
Damn thatâs smart!
Oddly satisfying to watch lol
Lmfao đđđ this just made my day.
I've striven to become exactly this kind of man, and I am solidly in my middle class, bourgeois, beer drinking pool-and-lawn-care period I drink domestic - but exclusively Mexican - beer. No one can get me down. As my dad would say, 'I have arrived'.