Dandelions and White Clover

     Although dandelions and white clovers are abundant on lawns, in meadows and along country roads, originally from Europe and considered undesirable by many people, I have to admire their beauties, benefits to wildlife and people, and ability to adapt to those human-made habitats already mentioned to their great advantage.  Some lawns are yellow, and cheery, with many golden dandelion flowers during mid-April and into early May and many of those same human-made habitats are white with the multitudes of white clover blooms from the end of May through summer.  These plant species represent adaptable life in abundance in built habitats.  They are in much of North America to stay.
     Both these perennial plant species adapted well to regular lawn mowing.  Dandelions grow blossoms on long and short stems.  Long flower stalks are cut off during lawn mowing.  But blooms on short stems are missed by mower blades and survive to produce seeds.  Eventually, all dandelions on regularly mowed lawns produce short flower stems.
     After they are pollinated by insects, dandelion flower heads quickly become seed heads.  Each seed has a fluffy, white parachute that carries it away on the wind, thus spreading the species across the landscape in abundance.  However, during May, many dandelion seeds are eaten by several kinds of attractive, seed-eating birds, including permanent resident northern cardinals, house finches, American goldfinches and song sparrows, and migrant chipping sparrows and indigo buntings.
     Cottontail rabbits, wood chucks and white-tailed deer are some mammals that consume the leaves and flower stalks of dandelions.  Those mammals add their own intrigues to human-made habitats.
     Though white clover plants are overlooked, taken for granted and on many hit lists, certain kinds of insects, mammals and people benefit from the regular mowing of lawns thick with white clover blooms.  White clover is another miracle of abundant life right at our door steps, even more so than dandelion.
     White clover responds to getting their flowers cut off during lawn mowing by quickly growing new blooms after each and every cutting.  That results in white clovers' constant production of new blossoms in abundance all summer and into early autumn.  A variety of bees, including honey bees, butterflies and other species of insects, therefore, have a seemingly unending supply of sugary nectar to ingest through the warmer months.                  
     Clover leaves and blossoms are eaten by cottontails and chucks.  I like to watch these mammals feeding on clover on our lawn at home.
     We get honey and wax from honey bees' processing clover nectar, as well as nectar from other kinds of flowering plants. The bees sip nectar from the blossoms and swallow it to a special stomach that converts it to honey.  When they reach their colony of waxy cells, the bees regurgitate the honey into those cells for a food supply for the bees that will live through the winter.
     We might as well learn to appreciate dandelions and white clover because they are adaptable, hardy and tough to eliminate.  They take advantage of human-made habitats to their benefit and have a future in North America.  Try to enjoy their beauties, and benefits to people and wildlife.