#mourning widow

[eddieslilmuse]

*feeds the gremlins*

[dododix]

only a few days since we saw baelor dying on screen and the baelor x reader tag on here is already filled with angst

[atelamonthatdoesntexist]

bunni is SAD because you didnt pet it,, why do such a cruel thing?

- 🔵non

[flowerishness]

Geranium phaeum (Mourning Widow)

It must be May because our hardy geraniums are in bloom. This lovely flower is saddled with the unfortunate name, ‘Mourning Widow’. I took these photos on Saturday and I had planned on posting them on Sunday. However, I think that we can all agree, that a flower called the Mourning Widow would have been ‘highly inappropriate’ to post on Mother’s Day!

[sol-lunas]

Cranesbill's .. by Christopher Via Flickr:

[flowerishness]

Geranium phaeum (Mourning Widow)

Pity this poor little hardy geranium saddled with a name like Mourning Widow. This species is unmistakable with it’s dark violet petals turned backwards and conspicuous yellow stamens. 

Hardy geraniums (or true geraniums) are not to be confused with the big showy blooms of Pelargonium also called geraniums. Hardy geraniums are from Europe and pelargoniums are mostly from Southern Africa, and this might explain why my Mourning Widow can survive a Vancouver winter whereas pelargoniums are often swept away by the first frost.

This confusion of names goes back to Carl Linnaeus who lumped both groups together in the same genus in his landmark Species Plantarum (1753). The mistake was identified by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1789 and they were separated into two geneses in the family Geraniaceae but, unfortunately, the original name stuck and pelargoniums have been called geraniums ever since.

[flowerishness]

Geranium phaeum (Mourning Widow)

Originally tough, self-sufficient, European wildflowers, most species of hardy geranium do perfectly well without human encouragement. Maybe not the best choice for your carefully manicured flowerbed, hardy geraniums tend to become big and ‘bossy’ and crowd out their more civilized neighbors. However, if you plant them in a spot that they can call their own, these joyful little flowers will do just fine.

PS I call this particular species “the Merry Widow” (Mourning Widow is just too depressing) and I always look forward to her annual reappearance in early May.

[flowerishness]

Geranium phaeum (Mourning Widow)

A lovely flower with an unfortunate name.