Yes, I am still battling the dandelions in my yard and they are winning! By this time of year, I would have thought the weather would have joined the battle on my behalf and simply killed all the dandelions with cold temperatures. But we have had mild weather so far this fall, so my grass is still green and my dandelions are thriving. (my front porch flowers are still alive also!) I am happy about the latter but not so thrilled about the former.

My battle strategy of late has been both unconventional and utterly unsuccessful. Perhaps it is time to rethink my current methods of dandelion combat. Of course initially, in the spring I employed the services of a lawn care company. They kill the dandelions with their magic weed killing formula applied strategically and liberally. Although, in retrospect, I did have to request additional treatments this past spring/summer, because the dandelions in my yard staged a comeback or they resurrected from the dead? (whichever seems more plausible) Maybe it’s true that “you can’t keep a good dandelion down”?

Now, if you remember from previous posts, the dandelions’ unexpected return to my front lawn resulted in me receiving very legal sounding letters from my HOA. This caused concern and the need for additional anti-dandelion treatments this summer. So you can imagine my surprise at having to deal with dandelions in my front yard once again, during the months of October and now November. The dandelions have staged yet another comeback or possibly a successful coup! And they appear to be multiplying!

I don’t see the dandelions initially when they are bright yellow because they are low to the ground and hidden by the grass. But then, as if by magic, my lawn is filled with silver spheres of fluff atop long, slender stems. They are actually kind of beautiful against the backdrop of the still green grass. However, I know what those perfect silver balls of fluff represent – seeds that will turn into more dandelions – hundreds of them. Dandelions are definitely dedicated to God’s command to “be fruitful and multiply!”

So my plan of late has been to pick these stems with the silver fluff spheres full of seeds while the spheres of seeds are still intact. Then I carefully deposit said silver seed spheres into the trash. My reasoning is that if I get them before the wind has a chance to blow the fluff balls apart, thus scattering the seeds everywhere, I can prevent the seeds from falling to the ground, germinating and producing exponentially more dandelions.

Every day I execute this battle plan to perfection. I pick and dispose of all visible dandelion silver fluff balls, taking great care not to set loose into the air any of the seeds. This is ironic because as a child one of my favorite activities was blowing apart the dandelion fluff, so I could watch it float away, carried on the wind. Doing this was strangely magical and satisfying simultaneously, because just like birthday candles, one always makes a wish before attempting to blow all the fluff (aka seeds) off the dandelion stem.

While others were wishing upon stars, I was wishing with dandelion fluff and in so doing, I was aiding and abetting the dandelions in their mission to multiply, cover the earth and subdue it. Little did I know that years later, I would find myself fighting against dandelion multiplication, in an effort not to arouse the ire of my HOA. To this end, I persevere in picking dandelions from my lawn before they have a chance to disperse their seeds.

At present, however, this is not a successful strategy. Every day when I arrive home from work, I notice my front lawn again adorned with multiple stems topped with silver spheres of fuzz, even though just the day before I had removed every single one. Not only this, but their numbers seem to be increasing each day, despite my vigilance and persistence. I am losing the dandelion wars big time.

Why isn’t my battle strategy working? Maybe because, as is inevitable, some of the dandelion fluff is blown away before I get the chance to remove the dandelions from my yard. I can’t keep watch twenty-four/seven, so some seeds will succeed in floating away and taking new territory. Realizing I need to be more proactive, I also pick any yellow dandelions I see, so they don’t even have the chance to turn into seed filled fluff. But somehow, there are still plenty of silver fluff balls that appear as if by magic, even though I thought I had picked off all the yellow dandelions before they could go to seed.

Clearly, I am not getting to the root of the problem. (pun intended) My battle strategy to date has not included digging up the roots of the flowers (or weeds as they are more commonly called). Digging up dandelions by their roots is hard work and takes much more time than simply plucking the tops off of the plants. I would have to get down on my knees. I would have to be willing to get my hands dirty. I would need to put in the time and the effort needed to win this dandelion war. Clearly, I am not that committed.

At this point it occurs to me that getting to know my adversary better, would enable me to form a more effective battle strategy. To this end, I have studied my enemy and in the process, have learned some fun facts about dandelions.

Dandelions have really good roots. This is why they survive and even multiply in less than ideal, even adverse conditions that kill other plants. This explains why the dandelions in my yard thrive even while my grass withers in the summer heat. I think dandelions have better, sturdier, stronger roots. And my research proved me correct. Sonya Query, master gardener, says this about dandelions – “They can grow in almost any condition and can regenerate from a little piece of root left behind when weeding.”

Resilient – that’s what dandelions are. Query also says dandelions have long tap roots which are hard to pull out in their entirety. This is why dandelions are so hard to eliminate permanently. Because of how quickly their seeds can spread and how deep their roots can grow, defeating dandelions is definitely a daunting task. It is precisely their deep root that makes them so hard to get rid of. And each dandelion plant can produce up to 20,000 viable seeds which are dispersed by wind over long distances. Dandelions are definitely a formidable foe! No wonder I am losing the war.

BUT – now that I have studied my enemy, the dandelion, I kind of admire and respect my adversary. Why? Well, besides being beautiful (I love their sunny yellow color and their mystical silver fluff ball beauty) they are also strong, tenacious, resilient and adaptable to multiple circumstances and conditions. Dandelions are survivors. Dandelions are tenacious. Just when you think you have them beat, they stage a comeback. Dandelion’s are overcomers.

I want to be more like the dandelions adorning my yard. Just as their roots run deep, I want my faith roots to run deep, deep enough to survive all of life’s storms and changes in circumstance – just as the dandelions survive their constantly changing weather environment. They not only survive, they thrive and multiply because of their deep roots.

How ironic that after learning more about my adversary, the dandelion, I want to be more like my foe. I want my roots to run deep, so deep that I will be steadfast in adversity – so deep that I will remain faithful and even flourish when I find myself in the hostile environments of governments and of cultures and of historical times. I will be like the trees described in Jeremiah –

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:7-8)

Being deep rooted like the dandelions is necessary for the survival of my faith.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:6-7)

Rooted in Christ, the solid Rock, (now there’s a paradox for roots) – I can withstand life’s storms and furnaces, of which there have been and will be many. Remember, the dandelion will grow back if even a little of its root is left in the soil. So will my faith be preserved through every flood, furnace and tornado of life as long as even a mustard seed remains. And like the dandelions, who Query says “can grow in almost any condition”, my faith can flourish no matter my circumstances. In fact, Paul says –

“I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:11-13)

Having the roots of my faith in Jesus Christ, that’s the key – just as the dandelions’ deep roots are the key to their survival. It’s like Paul told the Ephesians –

“that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge – that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:17-19)

“being rooted in love” – God’s infinite, lavish, undeserved, undying, compassionate, merciful, eternal love – love, that’s good soil, the kind of soil in which my roots can run deep like the roots of the dandelions that have taken up residence in my yard, the kind of soil in which my faith can grow strong and produce fruit – just like the dandelions! (who are no longer my adversaries but possibly my new role models)

I guess the dandelion wars are over . . .

sincerely, Grace Day