When ever I see Goat’s Beard or Tragopogon dubius I think of Far Guy’s Grandma Tracie and Auntie Esther. Both women liked to spray it with hairspray and put it in flower arrangements.
It is much larger than a Dandelion seed head.
The flower is yellow and not real pretty but the impressive seed head makes up for it. This is a non native wildflower..someone brought it over from Europe. Not sure why or how….mixed in with some seed…or did they really use the root once it was roasted as a coffee substitute?
Just caught up with several posts. Love your photos of wild flowers and the background you provide. And I'm glad you're feeling better. Hope you don't get the severe heat and storms they are predicting for most of the state.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Over here puffballs are a kind of fungus that, when it's ripe, 'puffs' out its spores when it gets touched by passing animals or even if the wind blows hard enough. Before they're ripe they're supposed to be good eating - though I've never tried one.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of giant dandelion clocks and can see why people would hairspray them and use them in flower arrangements. Very pretty!
Excellent photo! I think they're pretty. I've seen them, but never knew what they were called. I learned about spraying the seed heads from a photographer, though. I'll try the coffee substitute if you do! ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnd there you are at the top of my blog'lovin feed, with a wildflower/weed that I recognize, and have always wondered what it was. They are in full bloom here, on the roadsides, and in the fields...
ReplyDeleteMom and I went for a sweaty short walk [34C at 8 pm] in the intense evening sun the other night, and as we passed the park, she turned to me and asked, "do you remember those?"
Oh yes indeed I do, great childhood memories of travelling in the middle of nowhere, in the Interior of BC. Heat stifling, sun baking through the truck windows, a family camping trip with friends. Dusty back roads, gravel spinning as their vehicle suddenly pulls over to the side of the road and they spill out.
Our hippy friend, florescent, ozone squirting spray cans in each hand, scrambling up the hillside, spraying each plant. Orange, green, pink, and then she carefully gathered them into one giant technicolored bouquet.
Was she ever proud of that....
Great post Connie, I loved being able to relive that memory once again, and to finally figure out what that plant was called.
I remember spraying the puffballs with hairspray. Can't say they were ever used for anything though.
ReplyDeleteI never heard of spraying the puff balls! I wonder if they could also be dried for arrangements.
ReplyDeleteThat is a new one on me --- we do have the little Dandelion puff balls.
ReplyDeleteThey sure are pretty. I also never heard of spraying them like that to keep them intact. You sound like yourself again, so you must be all better! :-)
ReplyDeleteOh gawd, my mother used to do that!!!! I'd forgotten all about her flower arrangements until just now...wonder why? I have seen them photographed in the foreground of a sunset and the pictures turn out pretty cool If I experiment with it and it turns out, I'll post.
ReplyDeleteWe have that invasive weed here also. Sigh
ReplyDeleteLinda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
We use hair spray on cat tails and they do very well.
ReplyDeleteDad picked chicory for coffee. This is a beautiful plant.
I remember them as they always first confused me as being too big for dandelions. I have not seen one for years but I do believe it was up in Minnesota.
ReplyDeleteSome invasives behave themselves and do little harm . Other invasive like canary reed grass completely destroy native plants. So reed canary grass chokes out the native plants.
ReplyDeleteI have a very similar picture of the goats beard, taken in Oliver.( Thanks for the name, it saved me some googling time;-) ) There is a lot of it there. Never heard of the hair spray thing, I'd have to go buy some to try it:)
ReplyDeleteI never heard of the hairspray trick, either. I was on a family-activity hike where we sprayed weeds with paint cans once about 35 years ago, but that was it--LOL! Was pretty cool. We walked a large circle spraying away and then walked it again and picked the dried, painted weeds. The kids loved it! :)
ReplyDelete