Wednesday 11 April 2018

Violets

When I was a little girl we lived in a hamlet of 12 houses, plus a pub and a garage right beside a busy main road.......then it was the A45, now it's the A14 (and  thankfully for the people who live there it's been by-passed).
Right beside our house was a lane that once had been used for farm vehicles to get to the fields behind the houses although by the time I was growing up the lane was too narrow, with high banks and not wide enough for new tractors. We used the lane as a footpath to the fields and woods and on each bank of the lane every  spring would be lots of violets. And we picked them......... Such tiny little flowers, they would be taken home and popped in an egg cup...... there was no such thing as wild flower protection and no one had any idea that the next 40 years of modern farming would wipe out so many species.

Violets are pretty hardy and spread easily so they didn't completely disappear from the countryside but maybe not often seen on the edges of farm fields.

However, we've got plenty here in the grass all around the garden both purple and white.





The camera makes them look much more blue than they are in real life

Looking in one of my (many) favourite books


I found this page about Violets including how to crystallize them to use for decorating  cakes

And in another little book "Discovering the Folklore of Plants" by Margaret Baker, I read that "The colour and drooping head made the violet the symbol of death and ill-luck". 
 To dream of violets meant an improvement in fortunes, can't say I've ever dreamed about violets........maybe tonight.


Back Tomorrow
Sue



39 comments:

  1. I love violets, they are such pretty little things and have such a lovely fragrance.
    I have a little clump at the front and it always surprises me how early it flowers.
    J x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have them all over the grass around the veg beds

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  2. You always have such interesting information from your books. I also enjoyed hearing about your childhood memories of picking violets.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. i enjoy finding information to share from my books

      Delete
  3. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing your violets and reading about them. I have lots of them in our farmyard in the countryside of Oregon. I have white, lavender and purple.. and I have found they also come in yellow.. I'd like to get some. Thanks for sharing! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. As a child I loved violets and like you always picking them, do you remember that Devon Violets perfume? I used to buy it with my saved up pocket money. I still love them as much now, and have some (not a wild variety) in the garden.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't think I ever had that perfume - but might have forgotten

      Delete
  5. They are such pretty little flowers, there are lots down the lane near us. It's lovely they are part of your chidldhood memories. X

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. we were always picking flowers to take home when I was young

      Delete
  6. We have them in the church yard next door, and I always look for them when we visit other church yards. Someone was saying on the radio the other day that these old churches are one of the sanctuaries for wild flowers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I seem to remember a survey done about plants in churchyards - not sure by whom and when

      Delete
  7. Violets are such pretty little flowers. I hadn't realised you could crystallise them to use as a cake decoration. What a lovely idea.

    Mitzi

    ReplyDelete
  8. The wild violets are beautiful and so delicate. I’m finally looking out at daffodils in our garden-it’s been a long wait this year but so bright and welcoming.

    ReplyDelete
  9. As a child we had violets under a hedge surrounding an orchard, I loved them, last year I got a couple of plants, over winter I had 12 cuttings growing in the greenhouse, which I planted around the garden last week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You will soon have lots as they seem to spread well

      Delete
  10. Where I lived it was on the railway embankment. We too used to pick them and put them in egg cups. You brought back happymemories for me Sue.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We were always picking flowers, violets daisies, buttercups white campion. Probably caused the extinction of many species!

      Delete
  11. Beautiful little flowers. I'd be grateful for any flower right now lol. My childhood memories are of bluebells in one of the local woods. They looked so beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  12. We have wild violets all over our lawns which come back every year. I love to see them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They certainly cheer up the grass at this time of year

      Delete
  13. I keep searching - and sniffing - for those few, elusive clumps of scented violets. One small patch, so far. Lovely little things.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm going to have to crawl round and do some sniffing now!

      Delete
  14. I have violets all over the front garden,so pretty

    ReplyDelete
  15. I have violets growing in the lawn. Real ones that smell of violet, not dog violets. When I found them this week I thought my mother had come back to me. I spoke to her. I picked three tiny flowers and put them in a mustard jar. I started to get better from then on.

    ReplyDelete
  16. My mom had a north facing window and she grew African Violets of all colors. They really brightened the room. I have never seen violets in the wild here in CA. Maybe in Northern CA where it's more seasonal.

    ReplyDelete
  17. We call those small violets Johnny Jump Ups here in Canada. I do love the colour nestled in all the green.

    God bless.

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  18. I love those little violets. I haven't seen them in years as we haven't been outside of town for a long time. I used to pick them when I was growing up too.

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