Flowering Rush, Butomus umbellatus, Eelde, The Netherlands
The Flowering Rush in Dutch goes by the name of Zwanebloem: Swan Flower, apparently because the six pistils - look carefully in the centre of the flower - seem to look like swans craning their necks. Whatever the case, the Graeco-Latin name is less confusing; it is derived from the Greek words for cow and for cutting; the cow-part is unclear to me, but the leaves of this 'rush' are indeed quite sharp - they even look a bit like swords - and you can easily be cut by them. The 'umbellatus' is clear as well: the flowers at the head of the stalk are on elements that together form an umbel or umbrella; you can see one unfocused in the background. The name 'rush' is something of a misnomer because there is no connection to the marsh plants of that name.
Very pretty, the Flowering Rush in The Netherlands is a protected flower and it may not be picked or destroyed. It was imported into North America, and I understand that in Canada and the US it has become a pest.
This photo was taken on a bright and clear day in Eelde near Groningen in the north of the Netherlands. The wasps and bees and other insects made it difficult to get one of the flowers alone... It is not surprising that the flower paintings of the featured artist in the wonderful local museum - De Buitenplaats - Margareta de Heer (c.1600-1665) often also have insects and butterflies in exquisite detail.
(Incidentally, I am still having problems with transferring images from my SonyT200 and my VAIO to my tabletop WindowsXP machine: the colors seem to go all awry... Does anyone have a solution?)
Flowering Rush, Butomus umbellatus, Eelde, The Netherlands
The Flowering Rush in Dutch goes by the name of Zwanebloem: Swan Flower, apparently because the six pistils - look carefully in the centre of the flower - seem to look like swans craning their necks. Whatever the case, the Graeco-Latin name is less confusing; it is derived from the Greek words for cow and for cutting; the cow-part is unclear to me, but the leaves of this 'rush' are indeed quite sharp - they even look a bit like swords - and you can easily be cut by them. The 'umbellatus' is clear as well: the flowers at the head of the stalk are on elements that together form an umbel or umbrella; you can see one unfocused in the background. The name 'rush' is something of a misnomer because there is no connection to the marsh plants of that name.
Very pretty, the Flowering Rush in The Netherlands is a protected flower and it may not be picked or destroyed. It was imported into North America, and I understand that in Canada and the US it has become a pest.
This photo was taken on a bright and clear day in Eelde near Groningen in the north of the Netherlands. The wasps and bees and other insects made it difficult to get one of the flowers alone... It is not surprising that the flower paintings of the featured artist in the wonderful local museum - De Buitenplaats - Margareta de Heer (c.1600-1665) often also have insects and butterflies in exquisite detail.
(Incidentally, I am still having problems with transferring images from my SonyT200 and my VAIO to my tabletop WindowsXP machine: the colors seem to go all awry... Does anyone have a solution?)