10 Apr 2013

A - Z Challenge - I



Impatiens noli-tangere. Impulsive.

The plant Impatiens grows along woodland tracks where the ground is wet and beside woodland streams. The bright yellow, brown-spotted flowers, which look like hoods, are followed by narrow capsules, which at the slightest touch eject the seeds several metres away from the parent plant. Hence the name Touch-me-not.

The old fairy tale that follows resembles the plant. When the impulsive Little Red Riding hood walked in the forest alone, the Big Bad Wolf followed her, dressed in a hood to resemble her grandmother. Her mother told her not to go, in fact begged her to wait until her father returned. Once lured into her grandmother's cottage, Little Red nearly believed the imposter. Her father, the woodsman, hurled his axe just in time to prevent her death.


Proverb: It is easy to be wise after the event.

19 comments:

  1. I think I may have seen these but never known what they were. I'm going to keep my eye open for them now.

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    1. You must do a lot of walking. Mind you cover your head with a hood. ;-)

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  2. From the first time I heard the name when I was really small, I thought Impatiens is a wonderful name for a flower. :-)

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  3. I always thought that impatiens were Busy Lizzies but they look so different. Are they a different strain?

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    1. These are the woodland plants. As you say, they are probably different from the ones we know.

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  4. Hi Francene .. they're very pretty little flowers and the mix of bluey-green with the orangey red .. and Red Riding Hood - a good storyline mix .. cheers Hilary

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    1. Hehe. I thought Little Red Riding Hood made an excellent link.

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  5. Very pretty colors. I've known them by the name Touch me not. Or a similar version of the flower, anyway. And now I know they are linked to Little Red Riding Hood storywise. :)

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  6. So fascinating to hear how this flower relates to a fairy tale, Francene. Thanks for stopping by my blog. Happy A to Z!
    MakingtheWriteConnections

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  7. Hello Francene!

    it's my first time on the blog, visting via the A to Z Challenge, but seeing as I learned something new about these flowers I'm gonna check out the rest of the layout here.

    Lovely to meet you!
    Beverly
    http://bev-thebevelededge.blogspot.com/

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    1. How wonderful. And you left a comment on each one. Thank you so much, Beverly. That's my second name, by the way, so we have that in common as well.

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  8. We use them under the tree and in shaded areas though we have little shade. I like the purples oranges and pinks but the spouse likes red and white - it is a case for argument lol

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    1. You're luck to have plenty of light. Because of tall surrounding trees, the sun doesn't visit us very often. Just a couple of hours in the morning at the back patio and the afternoon at the front of the house.

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  9. Mum used to have a tonne of these in her garden in red, light purple and white. Lovely flowers!

    www.eachparent.com

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  10. Love flowers especially in the Spring because there are so many perfuming the air!

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    1. We're so lucky to be able to appreciate flowers rather than pass them by.

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