Bluebells

This week I’m going to discuss Bluebells, the quote for this week is ‘The Bluebells’ by Emily Brontë

The Bluebell is the sweetest flower

That waves in summer air:

Its blossoms have the mightiest power

To soothe my spirit’s care.

There is a spell in purple heath

Too wildly, sadly dear;

The violet has a fragrant breath,

But fragrance will not cheer,

The trees are bare, the sun is cold,

And seldom, seldom seen;

The heavens have lost their zone of gold,

And earth her robe of green.

And ice upon the glancing stream

Has cast its sombre shade;

And distant hills and valleys seem

In frozen mist arrayed.

The Bluebell cannot charm me now,

The heath has lost its bloom;

The violets in the glen below,

They yield no sweet perfume.

But, though I mourn the sweet Bluebell,

’Tis better far away;

I know how fast my tears would swell

To see it smile to-day.

For, oh! when chill the sunbeams fall

Adown that dreary sky,

And gild yon dank and darkened wall

With transient brilliancy;

How do I weep, how do I pine

For the time of flowers to come,

And turn me from that fading shine,

To mourn the fields of home!

Bluebells are native to Western Europe, and they grow by the thousands within English woodlands creating a carpet of flowers throughout Spring. Over half of the worlds Bluebell population are grown in the UK. The patches that the Bluebells grow in are aften indicators to identifying old-growth forests. Bluebells are traditionally a blue colour, but they also can be shades of pink, lilac and white, these colours are found in the Spanish Bluebell and not the English.  The Bluebell has had different names over the years, the Flemish botanist and physician Rembert Dodoens (1517-85) called the Bluebell Hyacinthoides non scriptus, which means ‘unwritten-on hyacinth-like plant’. Non scriptus means ‘unlettered’ or ‘unwritten.’ This was to make the distinction from the hyacinth flower, as they are marked by the god Apollo’s tears of lament, over the death of his lover, Hyacinthus. In 1797, the president of the Linnaean Society, James Edward Smith declared that that name would simply not do and changed it to Scilla Nutans, nutans meaning ‘nodding’ or ‘drooping’. The word Bluebell only emerged in the early nineteenth century, when romantic poets like John Clare and Gerard Manley Hopkins discussed gathering Bluebells, being enthralled by Bluebell,  as well as the observation that their heads all face the same way.

The Bluebell is a symbol of gratitude, humility, constancy and everlasting love. The bowing of the heads in a Bluebell shows both humility and gratitude, this sentiment is seen in folklore, it is said if you spot the first Bluebell in early spring and make a selfless wish, there is a chance that it will be granted by the fairies. The honesty symbolism is also seen in folklore with the wearing of a wreath of Bluebells, meaning you will only be able to tell the truth. The English idiom ‘true blue’ meaning loyal, faithful and unchanging is believed to derive from the deep, unwavering blue of the Bluebell that doesn’t shift or fade in colour. 

The Bluebell is surrounded by folklores around fairy magic. The Bluebell was once though of as ‘fairy bells’ that could lure people into the forest where they might fall asleep or disappear for good. In the Grimm Brothers’ tale, Der Berggeister Geschenke, ‘The Mountain Spirit Gifts’, a tailor and a goldsmith are drawn into the woodland of fairies by the sound of Bluebells ringing. It’s also believed if you hear a Bluebell ring, you will be visited by a bad fairy and will die not long after and if you pick a Bluebell, you will be led astray by fairies and will wander lost forevermore.  It’s said if you turn the Bluebell flower inside-out without tearing it, you will win the heart of the one that you love. Fairies are said to hang their spells out to dry on Bluebells and if they are disturbed the magic will be released and you will be fairy led into the woods to be lost and wandering, always. There is also a belief that fairies have their own cattle and horses and Bluebells are used as adornment to create blue collars.

Bluebells have been used for different things throughout history; their sticky sap was once used to bind the pages of books and to glue feathers onto arrows. They were also used to make starch for ruffs and collars in the Elizabethan period.

Facts about Bluebells

The Bluebell is protected by the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981), which states that if you uproot a flower from its natural habitat or trade the seeds or bulbs, that act is considered a criminal offence and can lead to fines up to £5000 a bulb.

Bluebells contain about 15 biologically active compounds to defend themselves from animal and insect pests

Thank you for reading, see you next week

Sources

Flowers and their meanings – Karen Azoulay

The healing power of flowers – Claire Bowen and Eva Nemeth

A Short history of flowers – Advolly Richmond

The myths, magic and language of flowers – Floriography – Sally Coulthard

Woodland Trust – Bluebells

The meaning of flowers – Series two – Bluebells the essay – Fiona Stafford

Season of earth – Bluebells flower meaning ; Symbolism and folklore

Lunar floral - Bluebells flower meaning: Love, loyalty and hidden messages