I sat out in the garden this Summer Solstice afternoon to do a bit of writing. By a fluke of timing, the chapter of Berserk! I was working on was set on Summer Solstice and details a Summer Solstice ritual. I love coincidences like this :)
Friday, 21 June 2019
A Misumena vatia Spider
I will conclude today's celebration of Summer Solstice with these two pics featuring a Peacock Lily and something rather curious I found lucking within its petals:
Misumena vatia spiders are curious little creatures which actually change their colour to camouflage themselves. The spider hiding in my Peacock Orchid was as white as the driven snow but this species can take on the most spectacular colours in their bid to surprise their insect-prey. I am no real fan of bugs, arachnids and other such critters, but sometimes the creatures you find amongst the garden flowers you grow can be just as fascinating as the plants themselves.
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| A Flowering Acidanthera Peacock Orchid |
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| A Misumena vatia Spider with it's Breakfast :o/ |
Bee Resting On Arum Lily
It is not just flowers that flouring during Summer. Insects do too. Here is a shot of a bee taking a little rest on an Arum Lily in my garden :)
Lavendar in the Sunshine
Another Summer Solstice image - Lavender in bloom, backlit by an intense Summer's sun really does make for an eye-catching magickal scene :o)
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| A Magickal Scene ~ Lavender in the Summer Sunshine |
Feverfew
Another Summer Solstice Celebration post, this time on a pretty little herb I found growing naturally in my garden - Feverfew:
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| Feverfew |
Feverfew was used in medieval Europe to relieve many ailments, including inflammation, menstrual pain and general aches and pain. It was also used as a protective charm against plague.
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| One of my cats exploring a Feverfew plant |
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| Feverfew |
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| Feverfew |
Field Poppy
An on my Summer Solstice celebrations rage, this time with a short post on the Field Poppy:
Field Poppies (Papaver rhoeas) are one of Britian's most vibrant and beautiful wild flowers. Given their delicate splendour, is is no surprise to find the flowers are rich in folklore and symbolism.
Most people know of the poppy's connection with Armistice Day (often called Poppy Day). This association grew from the WW1 battlefields in France, where the fighting churned up the soil and brought thousands of dormant poppy seeds to the surface and decorated the land where so many had died in swathes of the gorgeous red flowers. The colourful scene which marked the fields where so much horror had suffering and death had occurred is, perhaps, best remembered in the following poem, written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae:
Field Poppies (Papaver rhoeas) are one of Britian's most vibrant and beautiful wild flowers. Given their delicate splendour, is is no surprise to find the flowers are rich in folklore and symbolism.
Most people know of the poppy's connection with Armistice Day (often called Poppy Day). This association grew from the WW1 battlefields in France, where the fighting churned up the soil and brought thousands of dormant poppy seeds to the surface and decorated the land where so many had died in swathes of the gorgeous red flowers. The colourful scene which marked the fields where so much horror had suffering and death had occurred is, perhaps, best remembered in the following poem, written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae:
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Borage - A Beautiful Talisman for Courage
I continue my Summer Solstice celebrations publishing some of my gardening photography with one of my favourite plants:
Borage, a.k.a. Starflower, is famed for its reputation as a giver of courage and bravery. Just tucking one of its flowers into your pocket before a particularly stressful situation is said to be enough for this most beautiful of herbs to work its wonder. Such was this plant's mettle-inducing reputation that ancient Celtic warriors and Roman soldiers partook of its magick by drinking Borage wine before engaging in battle.
I don't know how true these claims for its courage inducing qualities are, but I am sure that their eye-catching splendour really does lift ones spirits.
Borage, a.k.a. Starflower, is famed for its reputation as a giver of courage and bravery. Just tucking one of its flowers into your pocket before a particularly stressful situation is said to be enough for this most beautiful of herbs to work its wonder. Such was this plant's mettle-inducing reputation that ancient Celtic warriors and Roman soldiers partook of its magick by drinking Borage wine before engaging in battle.
I don't know how true these claims for its courage inducing qualities are, but I am sure that their eye-catching splendour really does lift ones spirits.
Foxglove: A Velvety Cavern of Delight
In my third post celebrating Summer Solstice, here is a photograph of what I happened to glance inside a Foxglove bloom. I have to admit that I got spellbound for a moment inside its colourful, velvety cavern of delight:
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| The Interior Of A Foxglove Bloom |
Stinging Nettles
Continuing my Summer Solstice celebration of plants and flowers, here is a pic and a little information on that infamous 'weed', the stinging nettle:
Stinging Nettles are more often than not classed as weeds and are unwelcome in most UK gardens. Given their particularly less-than-showy flowers and the fact that the plants possess thousands of hairs which can easily puncture human skin and inject histamine and other stinging and irritating chemicals into those unfortunate enough to have merely brushed past its leaves, it is not difficult to understand this popular dislike for Urtica dioica. That said, Nettles do have their uses and their own particular charm and some people, myself amongst them, would be unhappy to see them disappear completely from their garden.
Stinging Nettles are more often than not classed as weeds and are unwelcome in most UK gardens. Given their particularly less-than-showy flowers and the fact that the plants possess thousands of hairs which can easily puncture human skin and inject histamine and other stinging and irritating chemicals into those unfortunate enough to have merely brushed past its leaves, it is not difficult to understand this popular dislike for Urtica dioica. That said, Nettles do have their uses and their own particular charm and some people, myself amongst them, would be unhappy to see them disappear completely from their garden.
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| Urtica dioica a.k.a. Stinging Nettles |
Hollyhocks
To celebrate this year's Summer Solstice, I am going to post some of my older photographs, which celebrate the beauty of the flowers I have grown over the years. I will start the ball rolling with Hollyhocks:
Hollyhocks have been used and admired by Pagans throughout history. Remains of the plant have even been found in 50,000 year old graves. Medicinally, the roots of Hollyhocks have been used to help clear chest infections, to stop bleeding and incontinence and to prevent miscarriages. In Victorian times, the pretty blooms were said to worn by fairies as skirts. Eating a mix of Hollyhocks, Marigolds, Thyme and Hazel, was also said to induce visions of the Faery Folk. The ripe seedpods of Hollyhocks have been used magickally to attract wealth to its owner and were grown in gardens as goodluck charm for the family.
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| Hollyhocks growing in my old garden a good few years ago |
Hollyhocks have been used and admired by Pagans throughout history. Remains of the plant have even been found in 50,000 year old graves. Medicinally, the roots of Hollyhocks have been used to help clear chest infections, to stop bleeding and incontinence and to prevent miscarriages. In Victorian times, the pretty blooms were said to worn by fairies as skirts. Eating a mix of Hollyhocks, Marigolds, Thyme and Hazel, was also said to induce visions of the Faery Folk. The ripe seedpods of Hollyhocks have been used magickally to attract wealth to its owner and were grown in gardens as goodluck charm for the family.
Romanesque Cabbage Detail
This has got to be the most psychedelic-looking vegetable ever! You really can lose yourself in the intricate fractal beauty of a Romanesque Cabbage!
Thursday, 20 June 2019
Elveden Forest, Norfolk
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| Elveden Forest |
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| Sunshine Seeping Through The Leafy Boughs Of Elveden Forest |
There have been numerous reports in Elveden Forest of faeries luring travellers away from their paths and into the faery realm. Beguiling music, the tinkling of bells and strange ethereal laughter have all been reported beneath the boughs of this magnificent forest. Such is the strength of this faery folklore that the forest even takes its name from these strange, alluring tales: Elveden - literally the den of elves.
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| Be Careful Not To Be Pixie-Led in Elveden Forest |
Heading Home With An Ouch!
Ouch! I woke up this morning with excruciating lower back pain and very limited movement. The only thing that I can think could have caused the injury was my collecting fallen twigs and branches from the surrounding woodland for our campfire the night before! Still, a seven plus hour drive home awaits. Thankfully, we wife will be at the wheel...
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| Time To Head Off |
A Father's Day Evening in Burlingham
My last evening in Norfolk. It was a lovely birthday weekend and it was fantastic spending some time with my daughter again :) We (my wife, my daughter and myself) sat around the camp fire chatting and making the most of our time together.
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| Chilling and Chatting Round the Fire |
Unfortunately, whilst I was collecting wood for the fire I did my back a bit of a mischief, the consequences of which I wouldn't feel until the next morning.
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| Yours truly collecting wood for the camp fire |
Despite the lower back pain that was waiting quietly to plague me in the morning, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and will treasure the memories of my birthday weekend :)
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| Warming up our yurt for the night ahead |
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