I recently discovered that Bachelor Buttons are also called Chicory and Chicory Bachelor Buttons. Learn about these blue roadside beauties' origins, similarities, differences, and love stories. And there's a Chicory Fairy poem sure to delight you, reflecting the Cycles of Nature that are never ending and the Hope that exists because of it.
Related Stories and Helpful Links
Bachelor Buttons vs. Chicory Look-alike
Cicadas sing 'Back to School'
Queen Anne's Lace Anomaly
Link to The Chicory Fairy and Plant Love Stories.com The Flower that used to be a Girl.
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I'd love to hear about your garden and nature stories. And your thoughts about topics for future podcast episodes. You can email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.com. Thanks so much for tuning in.
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Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden Designer
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Welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries.
It's not only about gardens; it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So, let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.
Thanks for tuning in, Mary Stone
Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com
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Ep 119 Bachelor Buttons vs. Chicory
Sat, Jul 29, 2023 9:50PM • 8:41
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
garden, Chicory, bachelor, plant, flower, learn, buttons, mary, blue, kate, lorraine, adore, turns, wrote, called, seeds, life, dilemmas, buckeyes, Cornflower, dilemmas, mary stone, garden, nature, inspiration
SPEAKERS
Mary Stone
Mary Stone 00:00
Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. I'm Mary Stone, and welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries. It's not only about gardens, it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learn from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.
Mary Stone 00:26
Hello there, it's Mary Stone on the screen porch. I tried to chat with you earlier today. The cicadas were singing in the trees, which brings a memory of the long-ago story and Episode 3- Cicadas Back to School, Gardens Glow. Although I have to say it's not even August yet, but we're getting close, and we certainly are in the heat of things, that is for sure. Thanks to those that reached back about last week's story about the Bottlebrush Buckeyes Hide Tree Knees. One of my gardening associates and friend Lorraine Tooley wrote, Hi, Mary. Funny that I did exactly the same thing. I planted Bottlebrush Buckeye where my diseased blue spruce was, and of course, I had to cut it down. I just love the plant, and I took a picture of it, and it's summer glory today. Thanks, Lorraine; gardeners' minds think alike --gardeners and those that appreciate gardens I should add.
Mary Stone 01:21
So last week, I mentioned Kate, a new client in Sparta, New Jersey, and we've had an email exchange about desired plants for her garden. She described the purple flowers along the roads she adores this time of year. And she called them Chicory. I thought she was referring to bachelor buttons, but as it turns out, Chicory is a different plant, though they look very similar and are from the same family. Both share a common name, which is why common names are misleading. I adore Kate's reminiscence of her childhood but don't want to spill the beans that turned into a Colin topic that starts like this.
Mary Stone 01:59
Hello fellow listeners and readers. I never knew that Bachelor Buttons are also called Chicory, and there's a Chicory Fairy and poem. What a delight when a new client Kate in Sparta, New Jersey, shared, "My mom used to read me this when I was a kid, and I've always loved it."
Mary Stone 02:18
By the white cart Road, dusty and dry look, there's a chicory blue as the sky or where the footpath goes through the corn. See her bright flowers. Each one newborn, though they fade quickly. Oh, have no sorrow. There will be others newborn tomorrow. Isn't that sweet? And what was even sweeter was the illustration she sent. I couldn't find the author or when written, but the charming illustration of a child fairy with wings sporting a chicory bloom cap and skirt dancing on the leaves with a swath of the lovely purple blooms surrounding her has a vintage flair.
Mary Stone 02:58
As I dug further into Common Chicory, I learned it shares the same common name as Bachelor Buttons, which I wrote about long ago. And according to Wikipedia, Common chicory is also known as Blue Daisy, Blue Dandelion, Blue Sailor's Blue Weed. It's also called Cornflower, Ragged Sailors, and Wild Bachelor Buttons. So are you confused? So was I, and why botanical names are essential in identifying plants. So the bachelor button that I wrote about in 2015, I'll put a link in the show notes. It's the Centaurea cyanuses are an old-fashioned flower that has beautified gardens for centuries. First in Europe, just as Queen Anne's lace. They grow well in full sun and are easy keepers.
Mary Stone 03:46
As the folklore goes, young men in love wore cornflowers. If the flower faded too quickly, it was a sign that the man's love was not received by his intended. Like the reality show, there's a new bachelor every year. (I wonder if that show is still running.) Bachelor Buttons are an annual plant rather than a perennial, which comes back year after year. But he self-seeds vigorously and grows 16 to 35 inches tall with gray-green branches. The flowers are about an inch and a half and intense blue. In the past, he often self-seeded in crop fields, hence the name Cornflower. So is he a weed or a wildflower? The same question is often asked about Queen Anne's lace by the way.
Mary Stone 04:31
In Europe, he's now endangered primarily due to the overuse of herbicides destroying his native habitat. Plant Life's conservation organization named him one of the 101 species to bring back from the brink. On the other hand, after introduction as an ornamental plant and gardens and seed contaminants and crop seeds, Bachelor Buttons have naturalized in many parts of the world. Here it's found wild in every state except Alaska and is considered weedy or invasive by some authorities, but they also attract beneficial insects such as ladybugs, lacewings, ground beetles, and other insects that feed on pests and pollinate crops, increasing yields.
Mary Stone 05:14
There are similarities between the two plants called Bachelor Buttons. Both are blue in hue and are from the same family, Asteraceae. The same family is asters, daisies, dandelions, and sunflowers. And both of these plants, called Bachelor Buttons, are edible. But the Cornflower is a brighter blue with flat petals outside and furrowed petals in the center.
In contrast, the chicory flower only has two rows of flat pedals. And as it turns out, you're more likely to see Chicory on the side of the roads as they are considered an invasive species in the United States. So I'm not sure we should use them in your garden Kate, but then again, you do have deer, so maybe they'll keep them trimmed back, don't you think? And both are lovely and come with a love story.
Mary Stone 06:05
Plant love stories.com writes about Chicory, a beautiful young maiden with Nordic blue eyes had to bid farewell to her bow, who had gone off to war. Every morning she would walk out to the spot by the road where she last saw him and wait for His return. Months turned into years with her bow nowhere in sight. Exhausted and overwhelmed by sadness, she finally sunk to the ground on the very spot by the road, doomed to forever wait for her love in the form of a blue flower. Such a sad little story but a beautiful flower she left behind.
Mary Stone 06:42
Back to the chicory fairy poem --I adore how it summarizes the cycles of nature that are never ending and the hope that exists because of it. Though they fade quickly, oh, have no sorrow. There will be others newborn tomorrow. Garden dilemmas, Ask Mary Stone.com.
Mary Stone 07:04
I was confused when I set out to write the story because I first thought I was talking about the same plant, the Bachelor Button I knew, and the Chicory she knew. So it's so interesting that I learned something new from digging in further. I love doing this every week because I'm learning so much from all of you. There's a plaque that my mother had as she exited into her garden. And I'm going to read it to you. Wonder is the beginning of wisdom. That's one of the inspirations of our time together is wondering what certain things mean, what certain plants bring to our lives, and how they cohabitate together. There are so many mysteries and so many things to learn about. So anyway, I appreciate our time together each week on the screen porch, and if you have as well, I hope you'll share the podcast with a friend or two so more can join us to learn and grow in the garden of life, and to explore the wonders of our beautiful world, and the wisdom that we learn from it. Thanks so much. See you next time on the screen porch.
Mary Stone 08:12
You can follow garden dilemmas on Facebook or online at Garden Dilemmas.com and on Instagram at hashtag Mary Elaine Stone. Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries is produced by Alex Bartling. Thanks for coming by. I look forward to chatting again from my screen porch. And always remember to embrace the unexpected in this garden of life. Have a great day.
