Dandelions

• The dandelion is a common weed found all over the United States. Its flower is not a single bloom but is actually a composite of over 100 tiny individual flowers, each with its own reproductive system. Each flower can create its own seed, which is why the white, fluffy clusters have multiple seeds on one stem.
  
  

Pollination

• When a honeybee lands on a dandelion flower to drink nectar and collect pollen, it rubs against the male reproductive parts of the flowers, known as stamen, and receives a coating of pollen. As the honeybee moves from one part of the flower to another, it spreads pollen to the female reproductive parts of the flower and pollinates the plant. This starts the reproductive process, resulting in a seed.
  
  

Honey Production

• Honeybees gather pollen in special pockets and bring it back to the hive, where it becomes honey. Honey is the food for the colony. Since the colony's queen is constantly reproducing, a great deal of honey is needed to feed new generations. Dandelions attract bees with nectar, a water and sugar-filled liquid that gatherer bees use as fuel.
  
  

Honeybees and Dandelion

• Many varieties of bees like to gather from one species of flower at a time, so the profligate nature of dandelions makes them a popular flower with bees. In fact, according to the Woodrow Wilson Foundation Leadership Program for Teachers' website, settlers originally brought dandelions over to the Americas from Europe to provide food for honeybees.
  
  

Dandelion and Apomixis

• While pollination from honeybees is a critical form of reproduction for dandelion, it is not the only one. The dandelion is an apomict, which means that it can produce seeds without cross-pollination; in effect, it can self-reproduce. Dandelions have developed this ability as a fallback method to ensure survival in case cross-pollination from honeybees does not meet its reproductive needs. As honeybee populations continue to decrease, this form of reproduction will become increasingly vital for the dandelion.