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
I like the bowl - very appropriate :-)
ReplyDeleteYou did it - nablopomo done for 2011. I will do my last post tonight.
ReplyDeleteThat bowl is a beauty!
ReplyDeleteVery pretty arrangement!
ReplyDeleteLea
Congratulations on a successful NaBloPoMo! Like Mark, I have one more to do. Great picture, too.
ReplyDeleteEG, Anna and Lea - it makes me smile every time I put apples in it :)
ReplyDeleteMark - thanks. Thank goodness it finished on a Wednesday - I don't think I could have written another word!
Helen - well done to you too. It was quite a marathon wasn't it?