Rubber Dandelion
Taraxacum kok-saghyz

Family: Asteraceae or Compositae

What it is like

Taraxacum kok-saghyz is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 0.3 m (1ft in). It is in flower from May to June, and the seeds ripen from June to July. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 0.3

Where it is found

High mountain regions, usually on light loamy meadow soils.

E. Europe to W. Asia - Turkistan.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 1

Leaves - raw or cooked. The following uses are also probably applicable to this species, though we have no records for them Root - cooked. Flowers - raw or cooked. The unopened flower buds can be used in fritters. The whole plant is dried and used as a tea. A pleasant tea is made from the flowers. The leaves and the roots can also be used to make tea. The root is dried and roasted to make a coffee substitute.

Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.

Coffee: the various substitutes that can be used instead of coffee.

Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating:

The root is a source of a high quality latex, used in making rubber. Yields between 150 and 500 kilos per hectare are possible. The roots are harvested in the autumn, before any hard frosts which can destroy some of the latex. They are then macerated to extract the latex. The root is rich in the starch inulin. After the latex has been extracted, this inulin can be converted to alcohol and used as a fuel.

Alcohol: Used for fuel etc. (this is wood alcohol, it is not the sort that can be drunk.

Latex: A source of rubber.

How it is grown

Succeeds in ordinary garden soil but prefers a well-drained moisture retentive humus-rich soil in full sun or light shade. Prefers a pH between 5.5 and 8.5. Dislikes very heavy or compacted soils. Top growth of seedlings is very slow at first until the root has developed. It is advantageous to mark out the rows with a catch crop such as radishes or lettuce. This plant used to be grown commercially in Russia as a rubber producing plant. It was trialed in various countries during the second world war and was found to yield a commercial harvest in Britain, Scandinavia and Northern N. America. In a trial in N. America plants grew better in the northern U.S.A. and S. Canada than they did in the south of the USA. With the advent of cheap artificial rubber interest in this plant dwindled. Many species in this genus produce their seed apomictically. This is an asexual method of seed production where each seed is genetically identical to the parent plant. Occasionally seed is produced sexually, the resulting seedlings are somewhat different to the parent plants and if these plants are sufficiently distinct from the parents and then produce apomictic seedlings these seedlings are, in theory at least, a new species.

Propagating it: Seed - sow spring in a cold frame and either surface-sow or only just cover the seed. Make sure the compost does not dry out. Germination should take place within 2 weeks, though 2 weeks cold stratification may improve germination. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, choosing relatively deep pots to accommodate the tap root. Plant them out in early summer. Division in early spring as the plant comes into growth.

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness:

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: Semi-shade, no shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

T. bicorne.