Plant of the Season
Queen Anne's lace
Daucus carota, whose common names include wild carrot, European wild carrot, bird's nest, bishop's lace, and Queen Anne's lace (North America), is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Old World and was naturalized in the New World…..From Wikipedia
A gardener’s life is never dull! We are easily pleased, taking great delight in the smallest treasures in our patch, perhaps a green shoot (I thought that was dead!), tiny beginnings of a bud, the sighting of a shiny skink, a ladybird, the buzzing of bees and of course, the sound of thunder promising a lovely downpour of cool, drenching rain to refresh our hot summer garden.
One morning in late autumn/early winter on my daily wander around my garden I noticed a patch of healthy green “weeds?” erupting in the middle of my gravel path. This curious clump was around 40cms square. What on earth are they? I often enjoy bits and pieces popping up in the gravel and of course I dig them up, pot them on and give them to friends. However, although I was a little excited, these unknown, very vigorous shoots that were growing at an alarming rate, needed to be identified before I spread disaster amongst my group of garden-ey buddies! I took photos of the then 20cm high foliage and shared it with my Facebook friends asking for any ideas as to what it could be? Although I had some extremely imaginative suggestions, not one was correct. Even Google didn’t know.
Dilemma. They had to go. They were in the middle of the pathway! I couldn’t walk around this great clump for the next six months, but….. out of sheer curiosity, I left one stalk in the ground, just to see what might eventuate. Well! Life for us gardeners is never dull indeed! Since spring, and so far through summer, I am thrilled to announce that I have “one” most adorable tall, swaying, beautiful stalk of Queen Anne’s Lace, putting on quite a show! I have never grown it before, I have never bought seeds, I have absolutely no idea where those little darlings came from. Thank goodness I kept that one sturdy stalk and thank goodness I pulled the rest of them out or we would have had a forest of one meter tall Queen Anne’s Lace in our tiny garden!
It is said that Queen Anne's Lace was named after Queen Anne of England, who was an expert lace maker. Legend has it that when pricked with a needle, a single drop of blood fell from her finger onto the lace, leaving the dark purple floret found in the flower's center.
Queen Anne's Lace, also known as wild carrot, showcases delicate umbels of lacy white blooms on numerous prominent stems. It can reach heights of about 30-120 cm high. This plant has attractive, fern-like foliage with the tall, hairy stems holding the flattened cluster of its tiny white flowers. Kind of like a white fluffy umbrella!
Caring for Queen Anne's Lace is simple. It’s as easy to grow as a carrot because it is a carrot! It looks particularly gorgeous and is perfect for mass planting in a wildflower meadow or cottage garden where the umbels of flowers will fill the gaps and attract many bees.
Other than occasional watering during times of extreme drought, it requires little care and doesn't need fertilizing. To prevent the spread of this plant, it is best to deadhead Queen Anne's Lace flowers before the seeds have a chance to disperse. In the event that your plant gets out of control, it can easily be dug up.
The bees and other pollinators are absolutely flocking to the pretty cottage-y blooms that I am so enjoying this summer. It is amazing how one tiny seedling that found its way into my garden is giving me so much pleasure, even in the totally inconvenient middle of my pathway. I have also found the lacy blooms outstanding as cut flowers. They looked lovely displayed in little crystal vases along our Christmas table. I am going to collect some seed and scatter them in a few appropriate spots in my small garden. I just love them!