Bee-utifully Useless

Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis) - the double-flowered form

Sprinkled through the grass on one side of our house are the lovely pale pink flower spikes of the Cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis). Normally, this sure sign of spring has four flower petals, but our plants, which are a "doubled" variety, have eight. This may be natural, but it may also be the result of horticultural tinkering; plant people are forever trying to "improve" on nature! The resulting flowers are undeniably pretty, but they are completely useless for pollinating insects. As you can clearly see in the above picture, all of the plant's reproductive bits (which should be in the centre of the flower) have been replaced by petals. And without stamens and pistils, there will be no nectar and pollen. The doubled plants aren't completely without merit, however. In addition to our enjoyment of their attractive flowers, they can also serve as food for the caterpillars of Orange-tip and Green-veined White butterflies.

To be honest, we're a bit surprised to have Cuckooflower in the garden at all. Though common and widespread across the British Isles (as well as most of continental Europe and western Asia), it's typically found in damp places such as wet meadows, riverbanks and ditches, and our property is anything but damp. But it seems to be growing happily enough, with even more plants apparent this year than last — presumably because Mike has carefully left a large unmown stretch of grass around them. Cuckooflower gets its name from the timing of its flowering. It blooms from April to June, first appearing at roughly the same time that Common Cuckoos return to Britain and start to sing. Its young leaves have a peppery taste and were used as substitute for watercress in the past. However, picking of the plant was considered unlucky (the plant was reputed to be sacred to the fairies), so it was never widely used medicinally.

A few of the scattered plants