Sunday 24 January 2021

Nature's Healing Powers

I know I keep harping on about Monty Don's latest book 'My Garden World' but because it is a book full of snippets of information, a book to be picked up, read and put down, it does tend to be forever in the front line of one's reading at the moment, particularly when the brain is hungry for anything to take one's mind off Covid.

My first reading this morning was a piece about Orchids - and it brought back such memories.   As part of a series on 80 gardens around the world, Monty visited Singapore Botanic Gardens where there is a famed collection of orchids.   As Monty himself says, he found the collection 'underwhelming'.   He also visited hothouses in this country where they grew orchids to sell in the supermarkets and he didn't find them exciting either.

Then - and here I related to what he said entirely - he found a wild one growing in one of his fields - and suddenly the excitement was there.

I was back on the farm.   Among the farmer's fields was one which didn't belong to him and it came up for sale.   Being a Yorkshireman he had a firm price for the field fixed in his mind when he went to the sale and the price rocketed past it.   He came home from the sale empty handed saying the field was just not worth that.  Five years later the field came up for sale again - the man who had bought it didn't find it suitable for his purpose.   The farmer negotiated with the man and bought the field((for more than the original price) so now it was his and added considerably to his farm.   The next morning, as we walked across the field with the dogs, there it was - growing in the grass   - a Common Spotted Orchid - just one.  I almost felt the field was worth the outlay for that alone.   Over the next couple of years one became three and when they erupted the farmer would come in and tell me.   Are they still there?   I don't know.   It is four years since he sold the farm but that find brought him such joy that I do hope so.

Cultivated, hothouse orchids did absolutely nothing for him at all.   But one common spotted orchid - now thats different - and does (as so many instances do) beg the question 'when does a plant become a weed'?

Later on he speaks of 'Birds Foot Trefoil' and what a pretty wild flower it is.   Last year - for the first time since I have lived here - suddenly one morning my front lawn was more Birds Foot Trefoil than it was grass.   So were a few of the lawns on this side of the road.   We could only assume that the seed had lain dormant until conditions were right.  The more the lawns were cut the thicker the crop grew until about a month later when its season was past.   Will it come again this year?   Who knows - we shall have to wait and see.

The year my Gardener and I are going to try to ignore the Mares Tail on my rockery until it is a certain height and then he is going to cut it off at ground level in an effort to weaken it.   Will it work?   I doubt it but I shall try harder this year to not be troubled by it.



26 comments:

Jennyff said...

We are just back from our daily walk and today I saw wild narcissi, I think paperwhites, flowering under the olive trees. On the darkest wettest January day when we were mostly walking in the cloud they lifted my spirits. I can well understand your joy at discovering wild orchids, we really cannot better nature.

Derek Faulkner said...

Couldn't agree more about Monty Don's book Pat. I finished reading it early this morning and it's the most enjoyable and informative book about the countryside that I've read and I've read a few. You might not like the piece about Rooks.

Amanda said...

I had an uncle whose window-full of orchids turned into a commercial venture with 3 greenhouses. We always had the most amazing Easter corsages - made from rejects, but still gorgeous. He got involved in preserving native orchids, and years later I got to do similar work, mostly with yellow ladies slipper (sometimes called moccasin flower). Had such a good time telling him how we had a wildfire get out of control, get way too hot - and a few weeks later, had yellow ladies' slippers coming up where it had never been recorded before, nearly tripled the preserve's population, over 200 new plants. All those wild orchids in bloom under the oaks were a sight to behold.

Carol Caldwell said...

A single wild orchid arrived in my garden which I was thrilled about. I kept it from being encroached by the surrounding plants and it was there for three years and then disappeared. We had snow here today in the South East.

Derek Faulkner said...

No snow here on Sheppey, in North Kent, just some light rain.

Rachel Phillips said...

I look forward to a Summer of peace with the marestail.

Anonymous said...

Your feeling that one spotted orchid made it worth buying the field worth it is just wonderful. It's zero degrees fahrenheit where I live yet seeing a single bird flying made it worth going outside for me. - Mary

The Weaver of Grass said...

Derek - I enjoyed the piece about rooks.

Debbie said...

Pat - You may enjoy "English Pastoral" by James Rebanks (The Herdy Shepherd) who farms in Cumbria. It talks of his farm's history in the family, the decline of "the old ways", the advent of the new farming methods and what he has learned and remembered from his grandfather. Lots of wildflowers in there.It is a book that broke my heart.

Also - if you haven't already read it, try Monty Don's "The Ivington Diaries". A few years old now - it's about the creation of his garden and is in a diary-excerpt format taken over a few years.

I can highly recommend both books

Debby said...

I once started putting together a garden called 'wild blue' made up of wild flowers of that color. Blue is my favorite color, and there are so many gorgeous wildflowers.

Heather said...

Some things just have to be endured, and possibly Mares Tail is one of them.
Wild flowers always give me a thrill. I can remember finding bee orchids growing on the slope below a local wood when I was a child. I can understand your delight at finding the spotted orchid.

Bonnie said...

I am happy you are getting such enjoyment from Monty Don's latest book! Isn't it wonderful when we find a book that gives us such joy!

Gail, northern California said...

I have a skylight in my office here at home. What a joy it is to hear the raindrops this morning. Thus far, we have received just a tad over 10 inches -- which isn't nearly enough to get us through the hot summer months in California.

While discussing persistent plants, I swear bamboo has them all beat. Thankfully, I think it's beautiful.

Bovey Belle said...

I take such pleasure in wild flowers of all types, and I can totally understand the joy of finding that one Spotted Orchid in the field. How lovely that one book can bring such joy too.

Cloudia said...

Thank you for sharing your lovely orchid memories. On Hawaii Island they grow wild too. Always special when I visit family there from here in Honolulu. Thanks for sharing your clear skies and bitter cold. I well remember them!

Granny Sue said...

I have to get that book. Maybe the library?

you continue to inspire me, Weaver.

Traveller said...

That book sounds wonderful, I shall order it.

One persons weed is another’s “rather nice plant”. I used to live in Toronto, my mother visited and admired a tall yellow plant in my garden....it was a weed...Goldenrod...not a weed in the UK.we had a wander around the local garden centre, and I pointed out a large display of a ground cover....my poor mother’s jaw dropped. She turned to me and said in absolute disbelieve...that’s ground elder! And yes it was

angryparsnip said...

We have many wild flowers here but with all our way to hot weather and lack of rain spring has been missing.

Joanne Noragon said...

What a great memory, and a good resolution, too.

Susan said...

Wild flowers are beautiful. I am not familiar with common spotted orchid and birds foot trefoil as I believe they do not grow in my area. In Massachusetts, US, our wild orchid is the lady slipper and I see them in the woodlands area of my property. I also like "The Natural Landscape," by Ken Druse. I will purchase "My Garden World." Thank you.

Cro Magnon said...

During our 'Orchid Season' there are lots around, but mostly of a very common variety; I don't know what it's called. But spotting a much rarer variety is wonderful, and I always return the following year to see if it's still there.

Librarian said...

At the moment, any flower that dares showing its head will be instantly covered in snow. It won't last long, as temperatures are forecast to rise to 9 Celsius by Thursday, but right now it looks pretty, white and pristine.
I have never been much of an orchid person myself, but I have two potted ones that were given to me as birthday presents in different years. One of them is preparing for a new flower, the other one is in bloom right now - with just one single yellow blossom.

Sue in Suffolk said...

It certainly is exciting to find a wild orchid just appearing from nowhere.

Hope libraries will open again in the spring so I can order the Monty Don book, I have the James Rebanks book that someone else has mentioned here to read soon

thelma said...

You can find Monty Don and his 80 Gardens series on BBC iplayer Sue. Watched him last night in India marvelling at Lutyens work at Delhi.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thelma - reading your reply to Sue above I thought for a moment you had gone to India - just thinking 'lucky you! ' when I realised what you meant.

Thanks everyone. Don't we all long for the first flowers of the year - mostly yellow (apart of course from our snowdrops) and very promising.

Rambler said...

I have two clumps of Hellebores in my front garden, creamy-coloured ones with pink/brown freckles. When the snow fell overnight, followed by a hard frost, I thought they would be flattened. But, no - the sun has melted the snow and there are the beautiful Hellebores as pretty and strong as ever, sheltered in their patch below the Camellia bush. I'm a very happy bunny to know that Mother Nature endures - and keeps right on enduring to brighten our lives.