Welcome to ‘In A Vase On Monday’ when I am linking up with Cathy at Rambling In The Garden to join her challenge to fill a vase for the house from the garden every week.
This week my thoughts are with the weeds – they are rampaging through my borders after this warm spring weather we have had. I am very through with weeding certain areas of my garden, particularly beds close to the house. As I move away from the house, however, I quite like a few weeds . Particularly at this early point in the year their freshness and lush growth lend a carefree abundant beauty to the wilder areas of the garden.
My particular favourite is Queen Annes Lace (also know as cow parsley) and as I have so much of it flowering this week I decided to make a vase of it!
Whilst researching this ‘weed’ I found this lovely short children’s poem by Mary Lesley Newton:
Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has washed her lace
(She chose a summer’s day)
And hung it in a grassy place
To whiten, if it may.
Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has left it there,
And slept the dewy night;
Then waked, to find the sunshine fair,
And all the meadows white.
Queen Anne, Queen Anne, is dead and gone
(She died a summer’s day),
But left her lace to whiten in
Each weed-entangled way!
I also found a far more grown up poem by William Carlos Williams called Queen Anne’s Lace, but I will leave you to read that one yourself.
The largest patch of Queen Anne’s Lace in my garden grows persistently under a very old apple tree at the end of the Woodland Walk. This tree grows almost entirely in shade and only has leaf cover at its highest point. Despite its position it produces a lovely crop of miniature sweet apples every year, although they are so high we can only use them as windfalls. I am considering adding a clematis or rambling rose to scramble up its old trunk – I would not want to put the old tree under any strain though.
I have found a legend that says that Queen Anne, wife of King James I, was challenged by her friends to create lace as beautiful as a flower. Whilst making this lace she pricked her finger and the story goes that the tiny purple red flower in each floret represents the drop of her blood that fell onto the lace. I had never noticed this blood red flower, but if you look very closely it is there. I am sorry that it is hard to see in these photos – I was not aware of it when I was taking them yesterday and so did not focus on it. It was also quite a windy day, so the flowers are slightly blurred.
In the language of flowers Queen Anne’s Lace represents protection and sanctuary.
I hope you have enjoyed this weeks look at Queen Anne’s Lace. My vase of weeds has now replaced my Easter tree on the hall table and is providing a frothy romantic feel to the room.
I hope you will pop over to Cathy’s blog and have a look at what she and the increasing number of bloggers joining in with her meme have made this week.
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It is a lovely idea filling a vase with it. Meadows full of buttercups and country lanes lined with cow parsley are the very essence of May.
I am late replying to comments this week Chloris, so I can tell you that the Queen Anne’s Lace, which was cut on Sunday, is still looking fresh and beautiful in my hall. It is surprising how long delicate looking flowers like this and the Forget-me-nots have lasted in a vase.
Well I don’ t know if you noticed on my dining room table I had copied your idea of using cow parsley and mixed it with meadow buttercups, Spanish bluebells and horse chestnut flowers for a wild flower, country look.
I am so sorry but with rushing I missed that beautiful sounding vase – thank you so much for this afternoon and I do apologise for arriving late and leaving so early. I just made it to school on time though so I left at the right moment!
It was lovely to meet you and we enjoyed your Asparagus!
I love Queen Anne’s Lace! and how wonderful for you to do an entire post on it! It’s beautiful alone or as a filler; I’ve been known to stop the car on a country road and get out to pick some (always handy to have some scissors in the car..) and my family thinks I’m quite nuts!
If I was in the car I would be helping Libby!
My granny called it ‘step mother’s blessing’ – never understood why.
I have never heard it called that Lesley. I am intrigued by all the different names and stories around these country weeds.
I love it, and used some in my wedding bouquet and in the vases on all the tables so it is always a happy reminder when I see it in spring.
How beautiful to use it in a wedding bouquet and very on trend – it was all over Chelsea last year. I am finding that it stands up well in a vase.
I’m always a bit suspicious about picking umbels, in case i get the wrong ones…..
Yes – I understand that you have to be very careful when foraging for flowers.
I love Cow Parsley, its billowing along our lane and together with the Hawthorn blossom, it looks so pretty, it looks lovely in your vase too.
There is nothing quite like a country lane in May is there? It is my favourite time for going out for a drive.
I adore your vase today – romantic, simple, just gorgeous 🙂
Thank you Sarah – after the cherry blossom finishes it is lovely to have this to replace it on my hall table.
Beautiful choice Julie! My weeds are not nearly so elegant as your Queen Anne’s Lace, which looks so charming in the vase and among the apple tree. My aunt used to stop by the roadside to gather it. susie
Thank you Susie – it is certainly worth stopping by the roadside for if it doesn’t grow in your garden. I am very careful in the winter not to weed it out.
What one person calls a weed, another calls a treasured flower. I have numerous “weeds” in my own garden that other people tell me they work to cultivate (Centranthus, Geranium incanum, Erigeron karvanskianus), many of which I’d gladly trade for Queen Anne’s Lace/
In my last garden centranthus was most certainly a weed – 4 years on here and I am still trying to get it to establish! We always want what we don’t have.
The lanes here are full of Queen Anne’s Lace and some have jumped over the hedge into the woodland. They will be allowed to continue flowering but I think they will get deadheaded before they go to seed! Your vase of flowers looks so pretty and proves you don’t need expensive flowers for a nice arrangement.
Thank you Pauline – I love the idea of using flowers that I neither bought nor bought – it seems to make the vase extra special.
Lovely vase of flowers and a delve into legend too. I think I might just have to pick some too.
Thank you Mel – I hope you found some.
I love umbellifers and think your vase is delightful…but the Queen Anne’s lace may be a bit upset to be considered a weed, no? 🙂
Thank you Annette – hopefully she can’t read!
Oh this is delightful – weed or not, it’s still beautiful. So glad you mentioned the link up – I’d love to join in next week.
Excellent Helen – I will look forward to seeing you there next week!
Beautiful weed photos! Oh… I mean flower photos. 🙂 I love Queen Anne’s Lace, I haven’t seen any by my house lately. I will have to keep an eye out for it. I think you are right, weeds are flowers in the wrong place.
Thank you Michelle – Queen Anne’s Lace seems so popular you might need to be quick before everyone else has taken it!
I had to smile at the the description of your weeds, Julie – ‘their freshness and lush growth lend a carefree abundant beauty’. I agree with you – but in moderation! It’s intriguing what things we tolerate – I don’t mind ‘herb Robert, for example, as it’s so easy to pull up when it gets over the top. I don’t have any cow parsley which may or may not be a good thing as your vase is so pretty and like many vases has shown that simple is still effective. I love all the history too – thanks for that, and for your support with this meme. I would recommend clematis for your apple tree – less heavy than a rambler. I have C montana Marjorie covering an old apple tree – the buds are just opening so i shall be featuring it again soon.
I had to look up herb Robert Cathy as I had never heard of it. It looks very pretty, even if it is a weed! I will take your advice and plant a clematis by my apple tree – I have a couple in pots looking for a home.
This is lovely – simply elegant, and I do love wild flowers. I must admit I got a bit confused at first as I only know Wild Carrot as Queen Anne’s Lace. That has a clear brownish spot in the middle too, but flowers later. Cow Parsley is such a pretty plant, deserving of a place in a vase. Lovely photos! 😀
Thank you Cathy – I have never heard of wild carrot before and descriptions on google are confusing, sometimes suggesting they are the same plant. A little more research is needed here – I will look at some books on wild flowers tomorrow.
One of my first posts was on it – the photos are tiny (I was a beginner to blogging!) but you can click on them to enlarge: http://wordsandherbs.wordpress.com/2011/09/26/99/
I think the slight confusion is because the flower photos you posted above were of the plant Cow Parsley. Queen Anne’s Lace can also be referred to as Wild Carrot because it is edible and has similarities to a carrot, but is a different plant than pictured. Both species of plants look very similar though (and there are some other common, more dangerous look-a-likes as well). Gorgeous flowers though and a great idea. I think an appreciation for native flora can bring awareness and a love for the land.
I’m really enjoying your blog which I have found through BYW, I live in Sydney and have a coastal garden, with a temperate climate. I so love the cooler climate gardens and miss all that you can grow. Being English I have fond memories of the plants and flowers you post about and love to see them growing in your garden.
Welcome Bernadette – are you enjoying BYW? How lucky you are to have a coastal garden in Sydney! I can understand you missing some of the English beauties, but I am sure you can grow some lovely plants where you are.
It was simple and nice.Julie,do jasmines grow in your climate?There are lots of varieties that you could die for.I used to have them in my garden earlier.i just remembered when I saw your tree.you can cut back after the season so it will not be a strain to your tree.
Hi Sajina – yes we can grow jasmine in the UK. I had a few mature plants in my last garden, but have not planted any here yet. Jasmine is a good idea – because you can cut them back hard, However they need a sunny position to thrive here and this tree is in a very shady spot. Thank you for your suggestion though – it is always good to bounce ideas around isn’t it!
I just love the simplicity of this! We don’t have any wild queen anne’s lace in our garden but now am longing for a patch. Just beautiful.
Thank you Erin – I am so delighted to see you here!! Flowering hawthorn and Queen Anne’s Lace are everywhere in Suffolk at the moment – it is just beautiful.
Behind with reading blog posts Julie as I’ve been away for a few days. I also picked some cow parsley for my vase too last Monday. I wish I had remembered its far more elegant name 🙂 Your vase is a feast for the eyes.
Thank you Anna – I hope you had a nice time whilst you were away – I am going to have a look at your vase now – Queen Anne’s Lace is such a gift!