Dandelion

Scientific Name - Taraxacum officinale Weber
Family - Compositae

Deeply taprooted, stemless perennial. Leaves, basal, slightly to deeply cut, with lobes that point back towards base. Single yellow flowers at end of each long, smooth hollow stalk. Leaves and flower stalks exude a "milky" juice when broken. Seeds brown, long stalked with a parachute of hairs forming a "globe". Reproduces by seed and can form new plants from fragments of broken taproots. Found throughout the United States, Alaska, and South Hawaii. Also found in the West Indies, Mexico, Central and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia.