Over here in Britain there's a slightly comical question embedded in our culture. That question is: What did the Romans ever do for us? The joke being that The Romans did an awful lot for us. They built a road network, they taught us more efficient agricultural methods, they introduced us to wine, rabbits and sweet chestnuts and, amongst many other things, they gave us Latin, law and scholarship.
And now I would like to pose a similar question: What did The Americans ever do for us? Well they gave us chewing gum, peanut butter, Bugs Bunny, nylon stockings, war babies, Lady Gaga, Make America Great Again baseball caps, Barry Manilow, chocolate chip cookies, Stephen G. Reed, grey squirrels and above all they gave us American skunk cabbage!
Never heard of the last one? No! It is not a euphemism for Trump, it is an invasive plant that appears to love moist ground. First introduced to The British Isles in 1901, it seems to have escaped from gardens and country estates and like American G.I.'s of World War II based in Britain, it clearly likes to multiply. American skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus) rises from the ground in early spring providing robust yellow leaf flowers about the size of a man's hand. The Royal Horticultural Society recommends that it should not be cultivated.
Not far from this humble abode, close to Whirlow Brook Hall, there's a swampy hollow where there's a colony of American skunk cabbages. I have known about it for ages and have posted pictures of the plant before. See here. But yesterday I decided to pay the hollow another visit and collect fresh images of the Yankee invaders. After all, what else is there to do in the middle of a worldwide pandemic?
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| This American skunk cabbage appears to be giving a personal message to D.J.Trump |
Some excellent photography here.
ReplyDeleteThank you Joanne. You have excellent taste ma'am.
DeleteOkay. the Romans were a long time ago. we may be looking through rose colored glasses. the americans not so long ago. But the cabbage. I'll bet one of your own buddies brought that over because it looked nice!
ReplyDeleteBuddies? I do NOT hob-nob with rich landowners Red...but you are right about the ignorant lack of forethought.
DeleteThat is a lot of skunk cabbage. At least it's a lovely, bright yellow and looks springy. Obviously my favorite photo is the last one.
ReplyDeleteI found this on Wikipedia
"Linguist Jesse Sheidlower traces the gesture's development in the United States to the 1890s. According to anthropologist Desmond Morris, the gesture probably came to the United States via Italian immigrants"
But wait, there's more.
"Pierre Trudeau, then the Prime Minister of Canada, gave the finger to protesters in Salmon Arm, British Columbia,[37] earning the incident the nickname the "Salmon Arm salute"
I'll leave it there. Hope you had a good walk and thank you for the lovely pics.
So you are claiming that the gesture is more Canadian than American? How can that be when the whole world knows that all Canadians are very polite, kind-hearted people who go to bed early, sing lumberjack songs and would not say boo to a goose? Just like Red in Red Deer, Jenny in Nova Scotia and your good self!
DeleteHah! And Pierre Trudeau is also responsible for the term "fuddle duddle" which he made up on the spot to explain what he had actually said in the House of Commons! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuddle_duddle
DeletePierre lived life on the edge.
DeleteI love the caption on the last photo!! Ha. Too bad the skunk cabbages are invasive, because they're pretty.
ReplyDeleteAs you are a true American patriot, I am relieved that the the caption did not offend you Jennifer!
DeleteYou certainly got some beautiful pictures of these flowers. I have heard of them but never seen any. I believe they primarily grow in the eastern part of the U.S. Supposedly they can smell something like a skunk. I have seen a skunk but would rather not.
ReplyDeleteThere's an eastern skunk cabbage and a western one too - from The Pacific North West. This is the latter variety Bonnie.
DeleteThat last photo is very funny.
ReplyDeleteAs the bishop said to the actress - I'm glad that tickled you Sue!
DeleteNylon was invented by New York and London scientists YP. That's why it's called Nylon.
ReplyDeleteYou taught me something today my good man. Thank you.
DeleteSomeone else mentioned skunk cabbage on their blog, and I didn't know what the plant was and what it looked like. Now I do - thank you!
ReplyDeleteI've not seen it here in Germany, but it reminds me of a similar, smaller one where the leaf that is yellow on the skunk cabbage is white. Ours is called Aaronstab (literally Aaron's staff), latin Arum. Look at the wikipedia entry here for pictures.
The Romans have done for Germany pretty much the same as they have for Britain. The Americans? Very similar again, only that of course they came here after the war as part of the allied forces and not during the war.
Then they gave Germany knickerbocker glories!
DeleteSnort. Get your facts straight, YP. The Americans (or rather Dutch settlers) gave the Knickerbocker Glory (a most vulgar dessert) to the BRITISH, not the Germans. It was the first dessert my future mother-in-law served me having set foot on these isles. No doubt a cousin of trifle and, at a push, the delicious Eton Mess. Still, Knickerbocker Glory miles better than what's that thing with banana and stuff called? Oh my god.
DeleteThe best thing to be said of KG? It's served in the most outrageous, thus endearing, blousy glasses.
How is your Latin?
U
I had my very first knickerbocker glory in an American airbase in Germany. I did study Latin at school Ursula - you can probably tell this from my erudite blogposts - rich with classical references. With my Latin scholarship, I already knew the origin of your first name. Ursula means "little bear", derived from a diminutive form of the Latin word ursa "she-bear". Saint Ursula was a legendary virgin princess of the 4th century who was martyred by the Huns while returning from a pilgrimage. In England the saint was popular during the Middle Ages, and the name came into general use at that time.
DeleteI have never seen knickerbocker glory on any menue of any German restaurant, café or elsewhere. The first time I came across the term was at a café in Scarborough, and I did not try it.
DeleteScarborough, Librarian? Try Stockport New Year's Eve, en route to the Lake District. On your own. On the dot midnight. Station, deserted platform. It was snowing.
DeleteU
Yes Stockport where all of our knickerbocker glory dreams come true.
DeleteVegan skunk cabbage recipes?
ReplyDeleteWhen Native Americans in The Pacific North West were very short of food they would eat it. It also possesses some medicinal qualities.
DeleteDo they have any beneficial effects on the swampy ground they invade? They are quite an attractive colour and it would be nice to think they are not all bad!
ReplyDeleteIf one rhizome was planted on The Isle of Man, it would be totally covered in American skunk cabbage in ten years. Do you want me to dig one up for you and mail it?
DeleteHmmm..it would go nicely with the Japanese Knotweed
DeleteIt could be a very, very long running reality TV show. Skunk Cabbage v Knotweed.
DeleteAt least it's pretty.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the space aliens will be pretty when they arrive.
DeleteThe bane of our community at the moment is Gunnera. It is massive and unbelievably invasive. We started an eradication programme last year on Lewis and on the peninsula where I live we killed thousands of plants. The problem is we will have to revisit them all for several years and this year might be a problem what with the lockdown and everything. But, who knows, I might carry my trusty machete when I go walking. It'll stop people coming too close and may slay a few Gunnera as well.
ReplyDeleteFor a moment I thought that Gunnera might be a type of seabird but now I see it is a plant sometimes known as "giant rhubarb". I remember taking photos of it at Inverewe Gardens when I was ten years old and as I recall I was wearing a grey ribbed jumper with a V neck that my mother had knitted for me the previous winter. That day I had no idea that the plant originated in the Serra do Mar mountains of southeastern Brazil.
DeleteWow. I've not seen any of them down here. I quite like them. I wonder why they are not considered a good thing to cultivate by the RHS?
ReplyDeleteHave you ever read "The Day of The Triffids"?
DeleteLOL at the shout-out! I read the whole paragraph aloud to Dave. :) Don't forget that America also gave you Jennifer and George/Ginger/Marco and Ms. Moon and many others! I don't want to hog the spotlight, here.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I have read about the skunk cabbage invading the UK, I have never actually SEEN a skunk cabbage in the UK. Maybe that's because I walk in and around London, where wildlife authorities are more prevalent? I have no idea. Like Addy, I actually like them -- but I know that some quite beautiful species (like the water hyacinth or purple loosestrife) can be a complete nightmare when they get out of their home range.
I hear what you are saying about Jennifer and George/Ginger/Marco and Ms. Moon but they did not invade! They are safely over on the other side of The Pond doing what American folk do - playing softball and drinking Coke.
DeleteI agree that American skunk cabbage plants are aesthetically pleasing. However, human beings' botanical interference is invariably bad news.
Lords and ladies
ReplyDeleteEh? I don't get you.
DeleteInvasive species have been with us a long time. European settlers even brought plants with them when they came to North America. I wonder if there is even any point in trying to keep nature from spreading from place to place on earth?
ReplyDeleteThat last picture really does look like what you said :D
But when humans moved plants and creatures around the globe that wasn't Nature - it was interference - frequently with devastating consequences.
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