TARAXACUM ZinnDANDELION

TARAXACUM Zinn - DANDELION

Scientific Description:

Scapigerous, glabrous or arachnoid perennials. Leaves basal, rosulate, usually runcinate-lobate. Capitula homogamous, ligulate, solitary or rarely few on scapes. Involucre oblong-campanulate; phyllaries pluriseriate, inner series erect, subequal, outer ones spreading or recurved, phyllaries often with subapical gibbosities or horns. Receptacle naked. Flowers yellow, rarely white; ligules often with coloured stripes dorsally. Achenes oblong, terete, 10-ribbed, variously coloured, usually spinulose (muricate or tuberculate) above, narrowed to a conical or cylindrical cone at apex which bears the slender white beak, rarely beakless. Pappus pluriseriate, finely scabrous, persistent.

Reference:
Van Soest JL (1975). Taraxacum Wiggers, In: Davis PH (ed.), Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 5: 788.

Public Description:

Taraxacum is a genus of perennial herbs, known as “dandelion”, is native to Eurasia and North America. There are approximately 2332 species and 55 species (56 taxa) in Türkiye. The English name, “dandelion”, is a corruption of the French “dent de lion” meaning "lion's tooth", referring to the coarsely toothed leaves. The flowers are yellow to orange coloured, and are open in the daytime, but closed at night. They have been used in herbal medicine to treat bile and liver problems and as a diuretic. Their leaves contains A, C and K vitamins and are good sources of calcium, potassium, iron, and manganese. Due to its high potassium level, dandelion can also increase the risk of “hyperkalemia” which is increased level of potassium in blood when taken with potassium-sparing diuretics.

References:

Anonymous 1 (2016). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taraxacum, Accessed date: 22.01.2016.

Anonymous 2 (2016). https://gobotany.newenglandwild.org/genus/taraxacum/, Accessed date: 22.01.2016.

Anonymous 3 (2016). http://www.theplantlist.org/1.1/browse/A/Compositae/Taraxacum/, Accessed date: 22.01.2016.

Ekim T (2012). Taraxacum Zinn, In: Güner, A., Aslan, S., Ekim, T., Vural, M. & Babaç, M.T. (eds.), Türkiye Bitkileri Listesi (Damarlı Bitkiler). Nezahat Gökyiğit Botanik Bahçesi ve Flora Araştırmaları Derneği Yayını. İstanbul, pp. 207–210.