Dandelion Rubber

Via TreeHugger, a cool alternative to rubber seems to be in the works....from everyday dandelions.

Discovery News
is highlighting an interesting development in the field of rubber.
According to new research being done in Ohio, dandelion root sap could
be made into a rubber of equal quality to traditional rubber from
trees, at a lower cost.

The exact details concerning growing and harvesting the
plants, such as how many inches apart and when they should be planted,
are still being worked out, but the researchers expect that within a
few years the processing plant in Ohio could produce about 20 million
tons of rubber annually.

By 2015 they hope to triple that amount, to more than 60 million tons, most of which will be used for research purposes.

 The best part is, dandelions are so ubiquitous in the continental United States that dandelion rubber means shipping costs would likely be greatly reduced.