Tuesday, May 4, 2010

A Field of Buttercups

Reach for the sky my yellow buttercup;
Towards the sun spread your petals wide.
Let its warmth and vitality blossom you;
To your Creator, spread your happy glow in pride.
Amid the clouds you stand in brilliance,
Growing without the aid of human hands.
Beaming like a sun blossom on the ground;
Flourishing colorfully in green grass you stand.

Author Unknown



Yesterday afternoon while rushing around doing errands I happened to pass by a field full of bright yellow buttercups, genus Ranunculus. I stopped to gaze upon the cheerful sight, remembering how I, as a child each spring, would gather bouquets of these sunny spring weeds.

Once home, I did a little research and thought it interesting to find out that, in the U.S. and Canada, there are 36 wild-growing buttercup species and that all buttercups are poisonous when eaten fresh by cattle, horses, and other livestock. Their acrid taste and the blistering of the mouth caused by their poison means they are usually left uneaten.



4 comments:

  1. I love to see the buttercups out in the meadows here in England but it is still a little early for them here. I could do without the creeping variety that seems to like my garden because it pushes out all my lovely plants and is really hard to control!!
    Susie

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  2. Oh Cassandra, those buttercups are beautiful! Yellow is such a cheerful and uplifting color! Thanks for sharing it with us!

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  3. Your buttercups and my bluebells Cassandra, imagine what a sight that would be! Just heaven:)

    I smile because I did the same thing. After standing in a field of bluebells I went right home and did a google search. Isn't it wonderful what blogging inspires us to learn!

    Best wishes for a wonderful Mother's Day Cassandra!!

    Jeanne:)

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  4. For years I thought of the buttercups in my gardens as weeds and battled with them incessantly as they sneakily overtook everything in their path. Finally, I just gave up and decided to look at them as exuberant, outgoing flowers with a lot of personality. Now, I just smile as I see them poking their lovely yellow faces out amongst every other plant in their company. Determined little buttercups, now I love them!

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