Feature Flower for July- Queen Anne's Lace

I was driving down the road and thinking to myself what flower should I feature this month. Then I realized my choice for this month's feature flower was easy. Right there in the ditch was my answer, Queen Anne's Lace. Meaning self-reliance, fantasy, haven, and delicate femininity. Queen Anne's Lace seems to be growing everywhere right now, adding it's beauty to the landscape.

Common Name: Queen Anne's Lace, Wild Carrot
Botanical Name: Ammi Majus (am-ME MAY-jus), Daucus carota

Queen Anne's Lace also make a wonderful cut flower/filler. It is available all year long and is very inexpensive. With it's wispy, romantic, vintage look and you don't need a lot to make a statement. The overall shape reminds me of a firework when it explodes in the sky.  The round, flat heads are usually 3-6"  across consisting of hundred of small, white florets. The stem size can vary up to 36". Queen Anne's Lace can even be dried.

One fable associated with the name of this plant describes the occasion of Queen Anne of England pricking her finger while working on lace, staining the lace with blood. If you look closely, you'll notice that each large `flower' has many small white florets with a red/purple dot in the middle. Like carnations, if you put them in a glass with water with food coloring, the flower will change color.

Interesting Fact: Women have used the seeds from Daucus carota Queen Anne's Lace, as a contraceptive for centuries.

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