Participant Info

Species

Taraxacum officinale

Family

Asteraceae

CommonName

common dandelion

Presence

YES

Status

exotic

EarliestDate

1925

LatestDate

2021

Ecosystem

basin, shrubland, foothill, montane, subalpine, tundra, ruderal, urban

Geobotanical

SSawatch, Garitas, SSanjuans, Culebras, NCristos, UBasin, LBasin

Counties

Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Hinsdale, Mineral, Rio Grande, Saguache, Archuleta, San Juan

Passes

Carnero, Cumbres, Grayback, Spring Creek, Stony

WildlifePreserves

Baca, Big Meadows Reservoir, Great Sand Dunes, Russell Lakes

Other Localities

Alamosa (town), La Botica, Del Norte

PhotoRecords

YES Rich Haswell: Rio Grande Co, Del Norte yard 1 June 2019

Comments

Hated by native plant lovers and loved by herbal tea lovers and a host of pollinators, the common dandelion is abundant in the Watershed wherever there is disturbed ground. It appears early in the spring and can be found into late summer. Some montane and subalpine meadows that have been grazed are now carpeted with Taraxacum officinale. It is present in every state—nearly every county—of the nation, and follows the Rio Grande drainage to the Gulf of Mexico.

Annotation