IN TOUCH WITH NATURE

Otago Witness, Issue 4032, 23 June 1931, Page 7

IN TOUCH WITH NATURE

FORGET-ME-NOTS.

By

J. Drummond. F.L.S., F.Z.S.

As the Old Country’s forget-me-not is "ot aggressive, and is too modest to assert itself where it is not wanted in New Zealand, merely occupying bogs and other wet places, it seems hardly necessary foi ' to include it in his vveeds of New Zealand.” It has no ambition to usurp pasture lands,, although sometimes it creeps hesitatingly and apologetically into a suburban garden, a ° , ne ’, ou t v * s it° rB through its blue Anglo-Saxon eyes, typical of the imperia) races on whom it was a lord-in-waiting when New Zealand was settled. Ouirla in one of her novels writes of a man with a dangerous glitter in his forget-me-not hued eye's. Blue eyes may glitter dangerously, but they cease to be forget-me-not eyes. The authoress whose books had a great vogue in Mid-Victorian days could have found a more apt similitude.

In these days pretty legends associated with flowers are not cherished. The blue-eyed forget-me-not, to almost every New Zealander, is nothing more than the yel.ow primrose on the river’s brim was fa Peter Bell. In Devonshire it is still the heaven’s-blue, but even in England, probably, nobody now believes that it grows for happy lovers. Not many years ago people in England who wished to find a place in the thoughts of distant persons pulled a sprig of forget-me-not and expressed their wish to it, in the belief that the wish would be gratified

. In earlier English days, a species of icrget-me-not allied to the common species and called scorpion grass was “ veriegoode against the bite of scorpions.” Boiled in wine, it was a cure for the bites of ‘ adders, snakes, and such-like venomous beasts.” In the fifteenth century there was a general belief that those who wore a sprig of forget-me-uot would not be forgotten by their lovers. A work pubin England 90 years ago stated that “this royal adventurer, Lancaster appears to have been the person who gave to the Myosotis, or forget-me-not, its emblematic and poetical meaning.” As a matter of fact, the forget-me-not lias tne waole of Europe for its home, and its English name is a translation of its name m France, where, apparently, it was the emblem of friendship before it received this distinction in England.

Coming from sentiment to natural history, the common forget-me-not is Myosotis palustris. Five other species, all blue-eyed, have came to New Zealand with it. One of these, Myosotis arvensis, is tne fabled scorpion-grass. Myosotis repens, the creeping water scorpion grass, has not been recorded in the Dominion The scorpion-grass seems to have given the group its common name, Myosotis. from two Greek works, “ mys,” a mouse, and “ ous,” an edr. The leaves of this species are clothed with long coarse hairs which makes them look like a mouse's ear

New Zealand has more interest in the forget-me-nots than is generally known They are better represented in the native plants of New Zealand than in the native plants of any other country. While the Old Country has five or six species, New Zealand has no fewer than about 30, more than half the total known from all parts of the world. Their great development here, contrasting with their fewness in Australia and South America, is one of the most remarkable features of Nev Zealand’s plant life. Against this is the absence of all poetry and romance from New Zealand’s forget-me-nots. Many of them display white, purple, or yellow, instead of the famous forget-me-not blue

Still, some sentiment is associated with New Zealand’s forget-me-nots. Myosotis Forsteri, which has white flowers, arranged in long, slender inflorescences, and favours the sides of streams, in hillv and wooded districts, or in open swampy forests, was gathered by Sir Joseph Bankt and Dr Solander, famous botanists who accompanied Captain Cook on his first voyage, and who, doubtless, were surprised to find a forget-me-not without the blue flowers they knew well at Home. This species has been dedicated to another botanist, John Reinhold Forster, who with his son George Forster, aecompameo Captain Cook on his second voyage. Solander saw it at Tolaga Bay, and in a few other places. When resident botan ists began to collect New Zealand plants, it was found that the speeies was fairly well distributed from the Bay of Island* south to the west of Otago.

A forget-me-not with large pure-white flowers, Myosotis explanata, is an alpinist, living in the Southern Alps at altitudes from 3000 feet to 4500 feet, snuggling into sheltered nooks and corners at the bases of masses of rock or of rock-pillars. It was originally discovered 50 years ago by Mr T. F. Cheeseman on mountains overlooking Arthur’s Pass. Later, it was gathered on Walker’s Pass, adjacent c.‘ Arthur’s Pass. It has been recorded in no other place. Many flowered clusters of bright yellow blooms, displayed in December and January, are shown on hill sides by Myosotis Monroi, discovered by Sir David Monro 77 years ago on Dm. Mountain, Nelson, and gathered later b* Mr Cheeseman on Red Hills, Wairau Valley. Large white flowers, half an inch long and half an inch wide, produced by Myosotis amabilis, have been seen by few people. They bloom in January on the summit of Mount Hikurangi, East Cape district, at a height of 5000 feet.

The discovery of one of the most beautiful forget-me-nots in the whole world,Myosotis concinna, fell to the lot of Mr Cheeseman 49 years ago. Ascending the northern slopes of Mount Owen, a broad and massive many-peaked mountain between the Buller River and the headwaters of the Wangapeka River, he reached open elevated rocky country that surrounds the higher peaks. There, at an altitude of from 3500 feet to 5000 feet, he saw this forget-me-not, plentiful and conspicuous, its bright yellow—golden —flowers showing in every nook and corner and filling the mountain air with their fragrance.- The beauty and fragrance of the flowers suggested to him

the cultivation of this New Zealand for-get-me-not in gardens, but no effort has been made to induce the species to spread its sweet influence to the lowlands

On the other hand, the noble giant forget-me-not of the Chatham Islands, known as the Cha'ham Islands lily, Myosotidium nobile, with dark gre'n leaves from six inches to fifteen inehe* in diameter, and bright blue flowers, has been established in. New Zealand gardens. A variety with white flowers is vaiu.'-d more highly than the blue-flowered species. Strangely, the Chatham Islands lilv. to use its popular misleading name, was first shown to botanists through specimens cultivated in England. Sir Joseph Hooker drew attention to it in the Gard nets’ Chronicle years ago Visiting the Chathnms 68 rears ago to examine the vegetation, which up to that time was known through only a few plants collected by Dp Dieffenbach 23 years previously, Mr H H. Travers was the first botanist who collected this notabl" island plant. “On the beach.” Mr Travers stated, “Myosotidium nobile grows with rank luxuriance, where not invaded by pigs, which feed on the roots.”

Old residents of the Chathams state that their wonderful forge!-me-not originally was an abundant coastal plant, growing usually on sandv soil dose to high-water mark. Mr A Shand, who made valuable researches into the legends and history of the Morioris. reported that in several places on the seashore it formed an unbroken line several miles long. Owing partly to sheep, which feed on its thick and succulent leaves, and partly to Pfas, it now is rare in a wild state, living in a few scattered places, which are becoming fewer. To cultivate it successfully, a little care is necessary. Mr Cheeseman found that it can be reared from seeds without the slightest difficulty, but to grow it to maturity and induce it to flower regularly, a special border is requisite. This should be made of sand and peaty loam, and the drainage should b° absolutely free Some shade is necessary, and abundance of moisture should be provided. If these steps are taken, it usually can be established, and will flower for many years in succession.