Taking Inventory: Dandelion

I know that every time I write about a flower in this column I tell you that flower is the best flower in Minecraft. But the dandelion is the best flower in Minecraft. Just look at it! It’s so tiny, so yellow, and so darn cute. Like a tiny yellow bundle of pure joy.

Dandelions were added to Minecraft extremely early in the game’s development, in version 0.020a on 20 June 2009. They were added alongside roses, and originally called “yellow flowers” - it took until version 1.7.2 until they were finally given their forever name: “dandelion”.

Dandelions generate naturally in almost all biomes, so they’re pretty easy to find. If you’re having trouble then grab some bonemeal and right-click the ground - a bunch of grass and flowers will grow, and hopefully, some dandelions will be amongst them. You’ll also find them in plains and savanna villages, and in a worst-case scenario, you can sometimes buy one off a wandering trader in exchange for an emerald.

Other than looking pretty in flowerpots and planted into grass or dirt, dandelions can be crafted into yellow dye, used to lure, breed and grow rabbits, and made into a suspicious stew - which will leave you a little less hungry for a while. That makes them one of the more useful flowers in the game.

In the real world, dandelions are common all over the world. There are lots of different kinds (more than 2,000!), but the two most common species worldwide both originated about 30 million years ago in Eurasia, where they grow wild today.

Real dandelions are very recognisable - they have a lovely golden crown that emerges early in the springtime and turns into a lovely, spherical ball of seeds after a week or two. Those seeds blow away in the wind, then settle in the grass and sprout to make new dandelions. It’s the ciiiiiiiiircle of dandelions.

The name “dandelion” originally comes from the French dent de lion, or “lion’s tooth”, referring to the jagged leaves. They’ve also been known by a host of different names - blowball, cankerwort, doon-head-clock, witch's gowan, milk witch, lion's-tooth, yellow-gowan, Irish daisy, monks-head, priest's-crown, and puff-ball. In Swedish, it’s called “worm rose” after the tiny insects often found in the flowers.

Dandelions have been used throughout history as herbal medicine, and can also be eaten - in fact they’re commonly found in Kashmiri, Albanian, Slovenian, Sephardic Jewish, Chinese, Korean and Greek cuisine. They’re full of vitamins and minerals, including calcium, potassium and iron. 

But don’t go around munching on random dandelions you find on the ground, because there are a bunch of plants that look pretty similar to dandelions which are decidedly not edible, and may make you feel very poorly indeed. Consider yourself warned, and stick to admiring their beauty with your eyes instead.