Antirrhinums
Dear Readers, this quiz was inspired by happenings at my workplace, where two of my colleagues are expecting babies in the autumn. I should point out that neither they nor I are wedded to this idea of pink-for-a-girl-and-blue-for-a-boy, but my garden does have a blue/pink/white theme, and as so many of my favourite UK wildflowers are in these colours I couldn’t resist. As usual, this is in two parts: blue first and then pink, and to make it a (bit) easier, it’s multiple choice.
Please submit your answers in the comments by 5 p.m. Monday (UK) time if you want to be marked, but it’s fine to just play along in private :-). If you intend to put your answers in the comments, you might want to write them down first to avoid being side-tracked by any speedy Peeps. Have fun!
Part One – Blue UK Wildflowers
Your choices are:
a) Common Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis)
b) Ground ivy (Glechoma hederofolia)
c) Borage (Borago officinalis)
d) Trailing bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana)
e) Bugle (Ajuga reptens)
f) Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta)
g) Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
h) Green alkanet (Pentaglottis sempervirens)
i) Wood forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica)
j) Periwinkle (Vinca major)
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
10)
Part Two – Pink
k) Redshank (Persicaria maculosa)
l) Common mallow (Malva neglecta)
m) Lesser burdock ( Actium minus)
n) Red deadnettle (Lamium pupureum)
o) Field bindweed (Convulvulus arvensis)
p) Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
q) Red campion (Silene dioica)
r) Everlasting broad-leaved pea (Lathyrus latifolia)
s) Red valerian (Centranthus ruber)
t) Hedge woundwort (Stachys sylvatica)
11)
12)
13)
14)
15)
16)
17)
18)
19)
20)
And here’s a bonus: several of these plants can have both blue and pink flowers at the same time. Can you name them, and tell me why?
1,f
2,h
3,a
4,j
5,e
6,b
7,i
8,c
9,d
10,g
11,m
12,o
13,r
14,l
15,t
16,p
17,s
18,q
19,k
20,n
1f;2h;3a;4j;5e;6b;7i;8c;9d;10g;11m;12o;13r;14l;15m;16p;17s;18v;19k;20t
a3
b6
c8
d9
e5
f1
g10
h2
l7
j4
k19
l14
m11
n20
o12
p16
q18
r13
s17
t15
lungwort is both red and green and so too is vipers bugloss (not on your list) I await enlightenment as to why this should be!
Here are my answers: 1 f Bluebell
2 h Green alkanet
3 a Lungwort
4 j Periwinkle
5 e Bugle
6 b Ground ivy
7 I Wood forget-me-not
8 c Borage
9 d Trailing bellflower
10 g Lavender
11 m Lesser burdock
12 o Field bindweed
13 r Everlasting pea
14 l Common mallow
15 t Hedge woundwort
16 p Red clover
17 s Red valerian
18 q Red campion
19 k Redshank
20 n Red deadnettle
When there are pink and blue flowers on the same plant, it’s because the blue ones haven’t been fertilised,and the blue ones have. As far as I know, lungwort and borage are the only two on this list which this applies to, but as you said there are several, I may have missed some!
I really enjoyed this quiz, as it featured some of my favourite flowers – my front garden is mostly pink and blue. Trailing bellflower has got a bit out of hand on the left of the path (although it’s looking very pretty at the moment), and periwinkle is definitely out of control on the right of the path! The ceanothus has been spectacular as usual, although the flowers are starting to fade now, and a purple hebe is about to burst into bloom.
a5
b6
c8
d3
e9
f1
g10
h2
i7
j4
k19
l14
m11
n20
o12
p16
q18
r13
s17
t15
The only one I’ve seen in pink and blue is the Forget me Not. (I even took a picture of them both together today – see post tomorrow, maybe). So, if it’s not to do with the Ph value of the soil (which I doubt because they always turn blue eventually) then I’m thinking the pink ones must turn blue (via some clever, technical botanical mechanism) as they ‘mature'(?) Just in time, I hope… 😊