Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
26th November 2022
Bottoms Up
You may be mistaken for thinking this photo of a beautiful little bee bottom in an open rhododendron flower was taken in the spring. It was taken last Sunday, the 20th November.
There are probably about 20 fully opened flower-heads on this particular rhododendron and the primroses underneath it are also in full flower.
The normal flowering time for both of these would be the spring, although primroses can flower as early as January. But not November. Many other spring-flowering shrubs and plants are in flower now too – alongside the holly in full berry and autumn leaves still clinging to their hosts.
Obviously it is all down to the unseasonal (I refuse to use the already over-used word, ‘unprecedented’) weather we are having – plants are simply confused.
The three main reasons plants flower this early are that the hours of daylight and darkness are very similar to what they are in the spring, when these plants normally bloom. Also, after a particularly dry summer, the recent heavy rains are similar to what we would get in the spring. And of course, the days are warm but the nights are cool – again, resembling spring weather.
So basically all the external factors, light, rainfall and temperatures are all indicating that it is spring and the plants are reacting accordingly.
The shame is that buds that flower now won’t flower again in the spring, only the buds that stay closed through the winter will. And that may well reduce many flowering displays next year.
Advent-ure
Advent begins on Thursday with the 24 days leading up to Christmas often being celebrated by lighting Advent Candles and opening the doors of traditional Advent calendars.
The traditional Advent calendars have either just a picture behind the little cardboard doors or if you are lucky, a chocolate. These days the less traditional and more expensive ones apparently have a bit more. For a whopping £22,000 you could be opening the doors (Stately?) of the most expensive Advent calendar, created by jewellers, CW Sellors.
This year, there are seven versions of the calendar on sale with the most expensive being the Chatsworth Winnats Luxury Advent Calendar, which is priced at £21,995.00. The calendar is made in the image of stately home Chatsworth House and the daily door opening will reveal a range of high-end gifts from jewellery to a limited edition gin.
Other gifts in this costly calendar apparently include an 18ct heart-shaped rose gold pendant and white gold and diamond stud earrings. The most special ‘jewel in the calendar’ is behind door number 24 – a Faberge pendant with a Derbyshire Blue John gemstone.
Crafty calendars are becoming increasingly popular according to various polls. Homemade creations can obviously be made to suit your own budget and imagination, from simply numbering boiled sweets 1 – 24 and popping them in a jar, to using envelopes (recycled if you prefer) pinned to a notice board and with a positive message, affirmation or Random Act of Kindness put in each one. And if you are trying to declutter, why not give an item away each day during Advent. There are lots of creative ways to celebrate the approach to Christmas and I can’t help thinking that if Dad had thought about this when my brother and I were kids, we would have had 24 different jobs to do during Advent.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines ‘Advent’ as ‘the arrival of a notable person or thing’. It stems from the Latin root, Adventus, which means ‘arrival’. Interestingly, ‘adventure’ comes from Adventurus, signifying something that is ‘about to happen’. Both Advent and adventure derive from the root word ‘advenire’.
Back in the 13th century ‘adventure’ was used to describe ‘a wonder, a miracle or accounts of marvellous things.’ By the 14th century, it was also used to refer to a ‘novel or exciting incident, or a remarkable occurrence in one’s life.’ And today the Oxford dictionary gives the meaning as ‘an unusual, exciting or dangerous experience, journey or series of events.‘
In All Honesty
I have always loved the wild plant, Honesty. As kids we used to collect it’s translucent, papery silver ‘coins’ that are in fact the seed pods that you can see now and that will hang onto the skeleton of the plant throughout the winter. As I got older the seed pods became a favourite for flower arranging and it became a ‘must-have’ in the garden.
The purple flowers, which appear in May and June, are popular with pollinators, and are beautifully fragrant and all parts of the plant are edible. As it is a member of the cabbage and mustard family, Brassicaceae, it will come as no surprise that the young leaves taste like cabbage (and can be used as such) and the seeds have a mustard flavour, which is intensified by crushing them and adding a little cold water. The flowers are also edible and a tasty and visual addition to salads and even the roots have a strong mustard flavour and can be cooked or grated and eaten raw.
Honesty is known by many common names including Moonwort and Money Plant. The latter two names refer to the seed pods resembling the moon and silvery coins respectively, but it is thought that the seed pods are also responsible for the more common name ‘Honesty’, referring to the transparent, and therefore ‘honest’, nature of the pods.
It is also a favourite for witches and in folklore as a protective plant and for spells using the flat ripe fruit pods to attract prosperity and wealth.
As a biennial, Honesty will develop during the first year, bloom in the second year and go to seed in that second year. So if you want Honesty flowers every year, you should plant them two years in a row, as it will only bloom in the second year, after it has had a chance to establish itself in the first year.
Deserving a place in any garden, it is a hard working plant, easy to grow and has even received an award of garden merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.
Honesty is the best policy.
Honest(l)y, that was a lovely advent(ure) down memory lane today! I hope all is well with you.