Drifting Dandelions

Drifting Dandelions Organiser’s Card About the activity This activity is designed to get children thinking and discussing seed dispersion. The school caretaker at Startown Fields Primary School has pulled up all the dandelions so now class 6 has no food for their pet rabbits, is Mrs Teachem right that they will always come back? Through this activity you will support your group to: • Find out about how dandelions spread their seeds • Discuss the different factors that influence how seeds spread • Record and present their findings Kit list • Dandelion seed heads • Metre rule, string, tape measures • Magnifying glasses • Camera • Wind meter (anemometer) or wind sock if available • Art equipment (if making models) • Scissors What to do 1. Introduce the activity using the poster. Ask them if they have seen dandelion seeds, what do they look like? 2. Give out activity cards and equipment to the children. 3. Explain that they will be investigating how dandelions spread their seeds. 4. Give each group a dandelion seed head. Encourage the children to look closely at the seeds. Let the children decide how they might measure the spread of the seeds. They may have their own ideas. Let them try these out. 5. Check that the children have thought about how they are going to measure the distance the seed travels. They could use metre rules, tape measures or marks on paper around the plants. If you have the right equipment available, they could record wind direction and speed. 6. Go outside and start by making a record of where the dandelions are growing. 7. Ask the children to present their findings to the rest of the group, they can be as creative in their presentation as they want. Children could record the event through a display of their photographs, by making a model or by writing a letter to Class 6.

Things to think about Dandelions generally produce seeds from late spring onwards. You may also find seeds in autumn. On fairly still days you can see the spread of seeds by catching them on paper around the plant. On breezy days the seeds can travel some distance. You can use a tape measure to find out how far. On very windy days the seeds might travel too far to measure. It may be easier to release one seed at a time and record where it goes. Keywords • Seed • Germination • Pollination • Plants • Dispersion Watch out! The milk needs to be heated. This must be done with adult supervision. Cover tables with clean paper cloths. The cheese can be eaten if everything has been kept clean. Do not eat the cheese unless it is fresh. Find out more Dandelion seeds are ‘parachute’ shaped and are spread (dispersed) by the wind. Seeds can travel up to 500 metres on very windy days. They produce many seeds that germinate (start to grow) easily. One flower can produce 400 seeds but the average is about 180. One plant can produce up to 12,000 seeds! Dandelions can also grow from bits of the root if the roots are left in the ground. They are a very difficult plant to control. Dandelion plants are used around the world for different things: • Flowers are used to make wine. • Leaves are eaten cooked or uncooked (they contain more vitamin A than carrots). • Roots are roasted or brewed as a drink (e.g. dandelion and burdock). British Science Association Registered Charity No. 212479 and SC039236