Flower Worship

Now that the snow here has melted and the first flowers of the year emerge, it is time for galanthophiles to wrap up warmly and set out on snowdrop walks. I love to see these delicate reminders of the suggestion that even while the bleakness, the dark and the cold are still with us, there is hope that there will also be flowers and blossom soon to follow. I have treasured the few snowdrops we inherited with the garden and have been delighted to see them spread to become a carpet beside the footpath. I don't rank myself among the truly or obsessively devoted to these pristine little flowers as I have never intentionally planted them or sought to collect new varieties or even set out  especially to walk amongst them in the several well-known locations around here. But every year I find myself wondering what it is that inspires a passion far greater than my affection. What is it about any flower that invokes this great love? There are societies whose members devote themselves to the propagation of orchids, fuchsias and so many others. There are those inspired by their passion to raise and maintain national collections. What is it about human nature and human senses that such specific colour and form can inspire such devotion of time, effort and resources to the extent that it necessarily excludes most other plants?

I may have come close to finding out when I encountered the Sacred Lotus. In the Botanic Gardens in Adelaide you can round a bend in the path and glance across to see a sight which can stop you in your tracks. It can send any thoughts you had of seeing the whole garden in a morning, or  friends waiting to meet you for coffee at the kiosk, or the guided tour you thought you might join, far from your mind.

 

 So you catch your breath and stand stock still for a moment and then give in to the urge to draw closer. The soft green leaves are waist high obscuring the pond; only the sounds of moorhens and wood duck  happily splashing about under their cover hint at the presence of the water. The flowers are at eye level opening from a neatly furled pink bud to the open flower fading to cream. Then the petals drop to reveal the conical seed head shaped just like the spray head of a watering can. Leaves, buds, flowers, seed heads are all instantly recognisable as motifs used in Eastern and Egyptian art.

In my case it took sometime for this visual impact to wane enough for me to remember that I had a camera and like other visitors could try to capture the beauty of these plants. 

I also began to listen to the conversation between a guide and the gardener tasked with the job of wading waist deep into the pond to pick some of the flowers. Parts of the plant are sources of food and medicine in other cultures. Scientists working with this particular planting have found that the plant has the ability almost unknown in the plant kingdom to regulate its temperature. It also features in the symbolism of several religions. Stunning, remarkable and an instance of that overworked word, iconic.

I still have no rational explanation of what drives some people to become enthusiasts, devotees, obsessives or just fans of a particular flower but I think I have an inkling of the feelings  that fire such inspiration.