9781422278277

INTRODUCTION

The bright colors of the day lily (Hemerocallis fulva) attract insects. The anthers are held in just the right position to dust any insect with pollen as it pushes into the center of the flower for its reward of nectar.

W ildflowers have always been a source of inspiration to artists and poets. Flowers have appeared in some of the earliest forms of art and are referred to in many ancient texts, including the Bible. Our earliest ancestors knew how to use plants for food and medicine, but they also enjoyed the appear- ance and scent of the flowers themselves, using them in burials and religious rituals as well as for decoration. The ancient Egyp- tians practiced gardening, as did the Romans, and in Christian times the knowledge of how to use wild plants was greatly used by monastic communities. Gardens are universally popular, but there is still a special charm and fascination with wildflowers. The cultivation and crossbreeding of wildflowers by gardeners to produce the immense variety of garden flowers we have today has been taking place for many hundreds of years. Discovering a beautiful orchid growing in a woodland glade, or spotting a delicate saxifrage growing out of an inhospitable mountain ledge high in the Alps gives a plant hunter more of a sense of achieve- ment than being shown the same plant growing in a garden. The sudden blooming of a desert after long-awaited rain, or the sight of a roadside adorned by wild daisies and clovers can lift the spirits. It is far more rewarding to find a wild plant growing happily in its natu- ral environment than it is to spot its cultivated counterpart growing in a neatly kept garden–so the attraction of seeking wildflowers remains. Happily, most people live within easy reach of places where wild-flowers grow, for even in the heart of the city, the tiniest patch of waste

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