Norwegian boy finds World's longest dandelion

Bjørn Magne, from Kløve in Hordaland County in western Norway, spotted an interesting specimen while on a forest hike with his mother last Sunday.

"It was a bit in the shade and must have stretched to come up into sunlight," the 11-year-old told newspaper Bergens Tidende's web site.

His mother Nina told Aftenposten.no that her son is an avid reader of the Guinness Record book, and in the 2005 edition had noted that the longest registered dandelion measured 100 centimeters (39.37 inches) and had been found in Uppsala, Sweden in 2003.



Nina believes that a cold spring and hot summer may have provided perfect growing conditions. She has checked with Schibsted, who publish the Norwegian edition, and there have been no entries to beat the Uppsala dandelion.

The family ensure that two independent witnesses viewed the plant - Principal Turid Tvedt from Kløvheim School and journalist Jon Tjore of the local newspaper Strilen - and they could confirm that it was 108 centimeters.

This should meet the Guinness requirements, and give Bjørn Magne a listing in the book of world records.