Cuckoo Flower Folklore

Cuckooflower also commonly known as lady s smock is a pretty springtime perennial of damp grassy places like wet meadows ditches and riverbanks as well as roadside verges.

Cuckoo flower folklore. It grows in damp grassy meadows and bogs its petals tinted pink or lavendar and is also known by the names lady s smock milkmaid may flower and fairy flower. Cardamine pratensis the cuckoo flower lady s smock mayflower or milkmaids is a flowering plant in the family brassicaceae native throughout most of europe and western asia the specific name pratensis is latin for meadow. Cuckoopint arum maculatum also called lords and ladies tuberous herb of the arum family araceae native to southern europe and northern africa. The red berries are particularly toxic.

The cruciform flowers typical of a member of the brasicca family. With its beautiful cruciforme flowers this plant belongs to the brassica family and tastes of english mustard or wasabi. The leaves are a basal rosette with 8 pairs of oval leaflets. Bad luck to hear a cuckoo before breakfast.

Its pale pink flowers bloom from april to june and are thought to coincide with the arrival of the first cuckoo a sure sign that spring has arrived at last. Lady s smock cuckoo flower. Cuckooflower cardamine pratensis often known as lady s smock the pretty lilac flowers open around the time the cuckoo starts to call. It is an important food plant for the caterpillars of the orange tip and the green veined white butterfly.

The cuckoo flower above is said to herald the first cuckoo of spring. Like many other aroids cuckoopint contains a bitter sometimes poisonous sap. When i was a nipper from leeds i was taught that cardamine pratensis was called milkmaid. The lecturer had never heard of milkmaid.

According to scottish lore the frequent calling of the cuckoo is a sign of the fierce gawk storms of rain that commonly coincide with its arrival. The flowers are usually veined with darker violet but in some areas pure white forms can be found. Cuckoo flower cardamine pratensis is a herbaceous early spring perennial with delicate lilac or violet tinted flowers with obvious dark violet veins and yellow anthers on a sturdy stem varying in size to around 40cm long seen from april to june.