Antirrhinums
Goodness Readers, I shall have to set you all a real stinker for next week! No fewer than 3 of you: Fran and Bobby Freelove, FEARN and Liz Norbury, all got 20/20, but I shall give the top prize to Liz, who gave the best answer to the bonus question. And special kudos to Anne, who got 17/20 even though she lives several thousand miles away in South Africa and Alittlebitoutoffocus who also got 17 even though he lives in Switzerland! A big round of applause to all of you, and well done!
Part One – Blue UK Wildflowers
1)f) Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta)
2)h) Green alkanet (Pentaglottis sempervirens)
3)a) Common Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis)
4)j) Periwinkle (Vinca major)
5)e) Bugle (Ajuga reptens)
6)b) Ground ivy (Glechoma hederofolia)
7)i) Wood forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica)
8)c) Borage (Borago officinalis)
9)d) Trailing bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana)
10)g) Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
1)1)f) Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta)
2)2)h) Green alkanet (Pentaglottis sempervirens)
3)3)a) Common Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis)
4)j) Periwinkle (Vinca major)
5)e) Bugle (Ajuga reptens)
6)b) Ground ivy (Glechoma hederofolia)
7)i) Wood forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica)
8)c) Borage (Borago officinalis)
9)d) Trailing bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana)
10)g) Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia)
Part Two – Pink
11)m) Lesser burdock ( Actium minus)
12)o) Field bindweed (Convulvulus arvensis)
13)r) Everlasting broad-leaved pea (Lathyrus latifolia)
14)l) Common mallow (Malva neglecta)
15)t) Hedge woundwort (Stachys sylvatica)
16)p) Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
17) s) Red valerian (Centranthus ruber)
18) q) Red campion (Silene dioica)
19)k) Redshank (Persicaria maculosa)
20)n) Red deadnettle (Lamium pupureum)
11)m) Lesser burdock ( Actium minus)
12)o) Field bindweed (Convulvulus arvensis)
13)r) Everlasting broad-leaved pea (Lathyrus latifolia)
14)l) Common mallow (Malva neglecta)
15)t) Hedge woundwort (Stachys sylvatica)
16)p) Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
17)s) Red valerian (Centranthus ruber)
18)q) Red campion (Silene dioica)
19)k) Redshank (Persicaria maculosa)
20)n) Red deadnettle (Lamium pupureum)
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?
Many members of the borage family (including borage, forget-me-not, green alkanet and lungwort) have flowers that change from blue to pink as they age – there is some evidence that this might serve as an indication to pollinators that the older flowers have already been pollinated).
“there is some evidence that this might serve as an indication to pollinators that the older flowers have already been pollinated” is fascinating to consider. I admit to doing a lot of guesswork in your quiz – like a crossword and working through a process of elimination! It was fun, thank you.
My Dad – brought up in Dorset and Sussex – used to call Redshank “wild rhubarb “.
Fascinating, Artie! And it’s in the same family as rhubarb, so not such a strange thing to think. I wonder if he ever ate it?
Thanks for the quiz – and the intriguing colour theory! – A litmus test of sorts.
Very litmus-y indeed! And of course sometimes the soil pH does change the colour of the plant, though I seem to remember that with hydrangeas it’s actually the presence of aluminium in the soil, in combination with the pH that affects the colour. Plants are endlessly fascinating…
Like Anne, I eliminated the ones I knew, then used my powers of deduction to allocate the rest… But obviously my powers of deduction need sharpening! Great quiz though. 😊
17/20 is a very fine score. Nothing wrong with your powers of deduction!
Yes, I was surprised it was that many. I must have been lucky with my guesses! Must get on – I have a post to do with some Forget-me-nots just for you! 😊
I loved this quiz – it reminded me of the weekly flower tests we had on my horticulture course. I always enjoyed identifying plants and learning Latin names, but i found other aspects of the course – such as soil science – much more difficult!
Soil science is mega-tricky…I love the way all the microorganisms interact though!