That blue flower: A spring spotter's guide
Spring is a prime time for blue flowers and my daily walks currently have several from the same plant family* lining the local footpaths. As I walked past the Donkey Field the other day, I overheard some children ask their parents** what the pictured blue flower was. It reminded me it's often mistaken for those other familial blues and this time was no different, as they said it was forget-me-not, instead of the green alkanet it actually is. As well as similar flowers, most of these plants are hairy in their nature, flower around the same time, and favour damp, shady places. Many of them are great for pollinators too, especially bees and this week's warm weather has certainly drawn them to these flowers. This makes it even more likely for these plants to be mistaken for each other and it's a great opportunity for me to put together a spotter's guide in case you find the same flowers on your outings. Staying with green alkanet, the key features which set it ...
Hi VP. That's a nice wreath. These things mean so much more when you make them yourself. You posted some good links - I've visited the-tree before and love the folklore stories. You're right to embrace Christmas. Gardeners are closer to the seasons and I think it's natural for us to want to mark the changes.
ReplyDeleteHi Simon,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words. Glad you liked the links, I do try and find good ones to use!
Hope you like the one I left on your excellent site re allotment coppicing. Good luck in the Shed of the Week Competition btw - I'll be posting a piece on mine here at some point...