GREEN SPRING GARDENS CONTINUED - MORE FLOWERS

 

The Magnolia blooms were a little past their prime but still very pretty.  I learned that the trees can last 80 to 120 years.  The size depends on the species.  Smaller species are only about 15 feet tall.  Larger species can grow to 80 feet in height.  

Magnolias are believed to be the earliest known flowering plant, with their fossils dating back over 100 million years.  Magnolia trees even existed before bees, so they rely on beetles for pollination.  

Instead of nectar the flowers produce large quantities of pollen that the beetles use for food.  I read this information and more at this link.

I shared information on the history of the house here if you would like to take a look.

This is the Grape Hyacinth (Muscari)

It is a perennial plant native to Greece and Asia and grow to be 6 to 8 inches in height.  

Despite its name it is not actually related to the hyacinth; muscari are members of the Lily family.  If you go to this link you will find a lot more information.

This is where I found the poem that I shared in my post a little while ago. It was outside a fenced off garden where they grow produce and other plants throughout the year.

The following cluster of flowers is called Virginia Springbeauty.  It is also called Fairy spud, Spring beauty, Good morning spring, Narrowleaf springbeauty, Eastern springbeauty, Common spring-beauty, Spring-beauty and Grass-flower.

It is native to Eastern North America, from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean.  It is a very important native plant for bees, as it is one of the earliest nectar sources.  This is one of the earliest wildflowers to bloom in Spring.  The tuber roots are edible and taste like sweet potato.  It can grow en-mass and is a gorgeous pink-white carpet on the forest floor.  They are often found growing near Wild Violets.  All this information I found here.

Wild Violets.  

There are 600 species of Violets.  They have been cultivated from about 500 BC and their color can depend on the species; they can be purple, blue, white, cream or multicolor.  

Native Americans had many uses for violets.  They made blue dye from them to dye their arrows.  They also soaked corn seed in an infusion made from the roots before it was planted to keep insect pests from eating the seeds.  

The Inuktitut/Inuit people placed stems and flowers among their clothes to give them a sweet fragrance, and almost all ate the leave and flowers.  

Violets were also Napoleon Bonaparte's Signature Flower.  He used the blooms to cover his wife Josephine's grave when she died in 1814.  In fact, he was called Corporal Violet by friends, after promising them he would return from his exile in Elba before violet season.  Bonaparte's supporters even used violets to determine if someone was loyal to him, by asking them if they liked the flowers - only a response of "Eh, bien" proved loyalty, according to the American Violet Society.

This is the Hellebore, and my information and more came from this link.  It is a plant that belongs to the buttercup family.  There are around 10 species of hellebore that originated from Europe and Asia.  Hellebore was extensively used as herbal remedies in the past but due to a high content of toxic substances, hellebore is mostly cultivated for ornamental purposes today.  Christmas rose, Winter rose and Lenten rose are popular types of hellebores.  Despite their name, they are not genetically related with roses.  The name "Helleborus" originates from the Greek words "helle" which means 'to take away' and "bora" which means "food".  The name refers to the emetic properties of this plant.  Like many plants it is quite toxic.  Historians believe that hellebore was one of the plants (part of an herbal mixture) responsible for the death of Alexander the Great.

These are the flowers that I was asked about yesterday.  The ID marker is a little fuzzy but it will show you what they are.  At this link it said, "'Golden Bells' Miniature Daffodil charms with dainty golden cups atop stars of small basal petals.  Cheery, upward-facing blooms extend the daffodil season from late spring through early summer.  Once established, each bulb can produce up to 15 flowers for masses of buttercup yellow color.  Their dwarf size and narrow leaf blades make 'Golden Bells' idea for naturalizing in lawns and meadows (Narcissus bulbocodium)."   

More here. "Daffodil 'Golden Bells' is known as the Yellow Hoop Petticoat narcissi."

I will finish now.  I tend to get carried away when finding out about the flowers and plants I photograph.  

Thank you so much for stopping by today and I hope the flowers around you bring you joy. Enjoy the rest of your week.