August 13, 2010

Queen Anne's Lace: From Flower to Seed



I've long loved this wildflower, with its legend of a queen pricking her finger, her drop of blood forever at the center of the pinwheel of tiny white florets. It has a nice light scent and is pretty in a vase.

Thanks to my recent penchant for carrying my camera on my walks to help in more careful observations, I have seen another beautiful stage in the life of this flower: its setting seed. As the flower ages, it begins to curl in on itself, finally forming a round basket of little stems and bracts, an elegant package. The more mature seeds, fringed by delicate hairs, turn a reddish color, singing out from the greens of the basket. There is such variety and ingenuity in the world of plants.



5 comments:

  1. beautiful little progression here, you just need two more to complete it - one pre-flower (next year) and the other when it dries out.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, Altoon--I have a meadow full of Queen Anne's Lace, and have never noticed how they are changing as the summer moves along.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Once again your eye and sharing is a blessing in my day. I had forgotten about the prick of the finger and I knew they curled, but hadn't seen the purple seeds. Nice, Altoon!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm happy that you all enjoyed seeing the development of the Queen Anne's lace. Maybe I'll get a shot of the dried seed head; I read that it later separates from the stem and rolls about like a tumbleweed.

    ReplyDelete
  5. A lovelty post Altoon... complete with legend. Theres a whole world within a world to take delight in. Thanks also for thoughtful comments...much appreciated!

    ReplyDelete