Pesky weeds can be an unwelcome sight for any garden party that brings an abrupt end to your glorious summer.
Weeds can often suck up all the nutrients in the soil and damage your lawn, but removing one in particular could also be detrimental to your garden.
Although the general advice is usually to remove weeds from your green space, whether they are perennials or annuals, gardening experts have urged applicants to avoid touching a particular weed.
According MirrorWe should all leave dandelions where they lie while they “extract essential nutrients” buried in the ground.
Dandelions are a perennial weed and tend to thrive in a multitude of grassy areas, including the side of the road.
Gardening experts say dandelions should be left alone as they ‘pull up essential nutrients’ buried in the soil (stock image)
There are a staggering 239 different species of dandelions across the UK and Ireland, with only 58 existing in the British Isles. The Wildlife Trust reports.
Although they are quite invasive and spread by hundreds of flower seeds packed into a single flower head, they have many advantages for your lawn.
According to the Royal Horticultural SocietyAllowing dandelions to thrive in your backyard can increase biodiversity in your backyard by spreading seeds into less cultivated areas.
Planting some in your vegetable gardens can also prove fruitful, as it stimulates bees and other pollinators, resulting in a more positive harvest.
This weed is key to a garden ecosystem, not only to promote biodiversity but also to a large part of the food chain.
According to the Wildlife Trust, they attract more than 50 different insects, including moths, flies, wasps and bees, which are then eaten by birds.
Dandelion seeds are also a food source for goldfinches and sparrows.
In 2023, Gavin and Stacey actress Alison Steadman backed the Wildlife Trust’s Wild About Lawns campaign.
The initiative encouraged people to allow wildflowers such as dandelions and daisies to thrive in their gardens.
She said: ‘I love relaxing in my garden listening to the birds singing. Longer grasses offer birds perfect places to forage, especially when there are many wildflowers among the grass.
‘One of my favorite animals is the hedgehog and what better way to make them feel welcome than a delightful patch of grass and wildflowers to hunt for worms and beetles?
‘I hope you’ll join me in freeing up your lawn and letting the golden dandelions bloom this year for a splash of color!’
Dandelions can encourage a fruitful harvest by attracting pollinators. They are also a key part of the ecosystem (file image)
Using chemicals to keep your green space weed-free can also be extremely harmful to your lawn and favorite plants.
More recently, Alan Titchmarsh revealed a chemical-free way to rid your green space of pesky weeds.
Speaking during a video for Waitrose & Partners, via The expressTitchmarsh said: ‘Once the border plants have thickened and covered the soil, there is hardly any room for weeds to grow, but until they do, the bare soil must be kept clean.
A small hoe like this, passed over the surface, will cut the annual weeds, separate the roots from the shoots and fry them in the sun.
Examples of common annual weeds include chickweed, fatweed, groundweed, hairy bittercress, annual meadowweed, and creeping sorrel.
