Skip to main content
Customize by ZIP Code
Menu Search User Account
Home Home
Scotts

Main Navigation (US)

  • Shop

    • Lawn Food

    • Grass Seed

    • Weed Control

    • Spreaders

    • Mulch & Garden

    • Gro™ Watering Solutions

    • Insect, Grub, & Disease Control

    • Outdoor Cleaners

    • Tools & Accessories

    • Featured Products

      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Wzz Spreader
      Scotts® Wizz<sup>TM</sup> Spreader
    • Featured Articles

      Green grass popping out of snow
      Winter Lawn Care Tips
      Illustration of kids drawing in the snow with colorful dyes.
      Snow Graffiti
  • Learn

    • Lawn Basics

    • Lawn Food

    • Grass & Grass Seed

    • Weed Control

    • Spreaders, Mowing & Tools

    • Insect & Grub Control

    • Lawn Disease Control

    • Mulch & Garden

    • Other Lawn Problems

    • Watering

    • Backyard Transformations

    • Lawns Matter

    • Featured Products

      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Wzz Spreader
      Scotts® Wizz<sup>TM</sup> Spreader
    • Featured Articles

      Green grass popping out of snow
      Winter Lawn Care Tips
      Illustration of kids drawing in the snow with colorful dyes.
      Snow Graffiti
  • Plan

    • Build A Plan

    • Get The App

    • Mulch Calculator

    • Featured Products

      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Scotts® Turf Builder® Edgeguard® Mini Broadcast Spreader
      Wzz Spreader
      Scotts® Wizz<sup>TM</sup> Spreader
    • Featured Articles

      Green grass popping out of snow
      Winter Lawn Care Tips
      Illustration of kids drawing in the snow with colorful dyes.
      Snow Graffiti
Search

FREE SHIPPING ON ORDERS $50 OR MORE

Lawn Spreader

Weed Control

Keep crabgrass, dandelions and clover from invading your lawn.

Weed Control

How to Kill Dandelions in Lawns

Difficult to completely eliminate, the plant (root and all) needs to be removed or they can grow right back.

Kill Dandelions in the Lawn

Even the best cared for lawns will have an occasional dandelion. They are difficult to completely eliminate, and the entire plant (root and all) of the dandelion needs to be removed or they can grow right back. 

Scotts Triple Action for lawn growth sitting on a green lawn.
A lawn with dandelions.

Prevention and Maintenance

Kill Visible Dandelions
The best way to attack dandelions is to kill the whole plant, taproot and all, and then keep new weeds from establishing themselves in your lawn. Kill dandelions and feed at the same time to help crowd out future weeds by applying a weed-and-feed product such as Scotts® Turf Builder® Triple Action or Scotts® Turf Builder® Weed & Feed in the spring. If you have dandelions growing in your St. Augustine, centipede, or zoysia lawn, use Scotts® Turf Builder® Southern Triple Action or Scotts® Turf Builder® Bonus® S Southern Weed & Feed instead. If a broad application doesn't kill all of them, spot treat any remaining dandelions 2 to 4 weeks later with a ready-to-use product like Scotts® Spot Weed Control for Lawns. Just be sure to follow the instructions on the label.

Don't hand pull them, as they will grow right back unless the tap root (often 2-3 feet deep) is completely removed.

Dandelion flowers growing on a lawn.

Get Mowing

A thick lawn is the best method for preventing dandelions and other broadleaf weeds in the lawn. Mow your lawn at a high setting on your mower, and follow a regular feeding program to achieve a lawn that is thick enough to keep weeds like dandelions from establishing in the first place.

Dandelion flowers growing in a lawn.

Dandelion Defined

Dandelions are a broadleaf perennial that can grow in any soil and are most numerous in full sunlight. In the early spring, new sprouts will emerge from the taproot, which can be 2 to 3 feet deep in the soil. They grow yellow flowers that mature and turn into white puffballs that contain seeds that spread with the wind to other lawns. Even though they disappear in the fall, the taproot survives deep in the soil to start the cycle again in the spring. To keep dandelions out of your yard, this root has to be killed.

26007_3_Transparent.png
Scotts® Turf Builder® Southern Triple Action
Learn More
Scotts Turf Builder Triple Action Bag
Scotts® Turf Builder® Triple Action
Learn More
Scotts® Elite Spreader
Scotts® Elite Spreader
Learn More
2021-01-27
2021-01-27
Scotts
136
70
/en-us/library/weed-control/how-kill-dandelions-lawns
https://www.scotts.com/sites/g/files/oydgjc106/files/styles/large/public/asset_images/dandelions_article.jpg?itok=O_Z1ecUq
phone
Call us with questions.1-888-270-3714
contact us
Send us an email.Contact us

Main navigation (US)

  • Shop

    • Lawn Food

    • Grass Seed

    • Weed Control

    • Spreaders

    • Mulch & Garden

    • Gro™ Watering Solutions

    • Insect, Grub, & Disease Control

    • Outdoor Cleaners

    • Tools & Accessories

  • Learn

    • Lawn Basics

    • Lawn Food

    • Grass & Grass Seed

    • Weed Control

    • Spreaders, Mowing & Tools

    • Insect & Grub Control

    • Lawn Disease Control

    • Mulch & Garden

    • Other Lawn Problems

    • Watering

    • Backyard Transformations

    • Lawns Matter

  • Plan

    • Build A Plan

    • Get The App

    • Mulch Calculator

Social Media

  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram

Download Our App

My Lawn App by Scotts helps simplify your lawn care.

Footer menu

  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Notice
  • About Cookies
  • About Interest Based Ads
  • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
  • Return Policy
  • Site Map
  • Our Brands
  • Investor Relations
  • Careers

© 2002-2020 The Scotts Company LLC. World rights reserved.