Most will recognize that lovely fragrance of a honeysuckle and children love to pull the stamen in order to enjoy a drop of sweet, edible nectar (hence the name: honeysuckle)! Lonicera ciliosa, the orange honeysuckle or western trumpet honeysuckle is what we have growing here in North Idaho. The twining, trailing vines can climb up …
If you live in a climate where Achillea millefolium grows, then you’re probably beginning to see her delicate blooms everywhere you look! Meet the Yarrow Fairy: Among the harebells and the grass, The grass all feathery with seed, I dream, and see the people pass: They pay me little heed. And yet the children …
Heartsease is a colorful variety of the viola flower, also known as “Johnny Jump-ups” or Viola tricolor. They’re among the earlier of spring flowers. There’s nothing quite as cheerful as a patch of Johnny Jump-ups poking their heads above the snow! Meet the Heartsease Fairy: Like the richest velvet (I’ve heard the fairies tell) Grow …
Don’t you just love graceful willow branches with fluffy catkins? The catkins of the Salix genus appear long before the leaves, and are one of the early signs of spring. ?? Meet the Willow-Catkin fairy partner: And here’s the Willow-Catkin’s rhyme: The people call me Palm, they do; They call me Pussy-willow too. And when …
Spring is in the air! If you haven’t seen these happiest of yellow spring flowers popping up everywhere, you will very soon! Meet the Dandelion’s fairy partner: And here’s the Dandelion’s rhyme: See my leaves with tooth-like edges; Blow my clocks to tell the time; See me flaunting by the hedges, In the meadow, in …
Since we just celebrated St. Patrick’s Day, I think it’s appropriate to see the fairy that accompanies the white clover. To be clear, the shamrock can be represented by both clovers or wood sorrel. They believe that it was actually the sorrel that St. Patrick chose (see herbal folklore post on St. Patrick’s Day) but …
I love the idea of fairies. ? Their sparkly wings, communing in nature, maybe even a little troublesome. (If you haven’t read or seen Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, go do that now!) In the early 20th century, there was a very talented artist by the name of Cicely Mary Barker who created 170 flower fairies …
