Misalliance ... to veer to the left, or to veer to the right?!

Fragrant Honeysuckle and the convolvulating Bindweed - an unlikely pair as you’ll ever meet have been immortalised in the Flanders and Swann song “Misalliance” – a fascinating societal tale of life .. so true, so sad. Did you know the honeysuckle spirals clockwise towards the sun, while the twisty bindweed climbs counter clockwise – no, nor did I.

Honeysuckle - photo c/o Peter Wuebker - gallery here (of Betsy and Peter - Passing Thru fame)

On reading the words who could not be touched by them?

Said the right-handed honeysuckle to the left-handed bindweed
“Oh, let us get married, if our parents don’t mind, we’d
Be loving and inseparable, inextricably entwined, we’d
Live happily ever after” said the honeysuckle to the bindweed.
It goes on:

To the honeysuckle’s parents it came as a shock.
“The bindweed,” they cried, “are inferior stock!
They’re uncultivated, of breeding bereft,
We twine to the right and they twine to the left”

You can imagine the misalliance in the tale .. but what powerful words describing the story .. I loved it when I heard it last weekend.

Field or Lesser bindweed

The word misalliance seemed a good word to describe some other plants and their unlikely destinations in life .. a seed planted by a three year old that can shoot to over 23 feet in a year and turn into a beautiful sunflower .. would the best way to view this - be with a spiral staircase – the tot would be overawed otherwise?

Leonardo da Vinci (1452 – 1519) was the first to record in his botanical studies that heliotropic flowers track the sun’s motion across the sky – this picture shows the incredible detail of the sunflower’s inflorescence, with the florets in spirals of 34 and 55 around the outside - there’s a Fibonacci link here – but another day.

The sunflower's inflorescence
We know that the sunflower is an ancient plant from central America, probably spreading into the rest of the continent 4,500 years ago, but now is a global and valuable food resource .. but did you know that they can be used to extract toxic ingredients from the soil, such as lead, arsenic and uranium – after Chernobyl they were used to remove cesium-137 and strontium-90 from a nearby pond.

Another Mexican plant, imported for its ornamental value – the Agave .. also surprises us .. a Cornish couple went away for a few weeks and returned to find a towering flower spike .. the sad thing is .. the plant after many years puts all its energy into the flowering – then poof .. that’s it – it dies. No wonder it’s also known as the Century plant flowering only once after decades of dormancy.

Agave too has many uses .. it is an alternative to sugar, with the sap being known by the name ‘aguamiel’ (honey water) .. while didgeridoos can be made from the dried out stalks. In pre-Columbian Mexico, agave was used to make rope, matting, pens, nails and needles, as well as thread to sew or weave with.

Agave at Cape Sounion, Attica, Greece

Didgeridoos, that incredible wind instrument developed by the northern Indigenous Australians, apparently have another use – which I think is worth mentioning, while obviously needing to be investigated, is that by learning to play one - using the circular breathing technique, this may help people reduce their snoring and sleep apnea through the strengthening of their muscles in the upper airway.

Top: Traditionally crafted & decorated

Middle: Bamboo souvenir didgeridoo

Bottom: Traditionally crafted & undecorated

Now the Karvy .. which only takes a decade or so for the bloom cycle to happen – is to be found along the western coast of India – but when it blossoms .. oh! it blossoms .. covering many a forest area with a colourful veil. A veritable feast for the eyes as well as the ears ... just sitting quietly surrounded in a haze of purple .. with numerous species of butterflies, bees, and other insects buzzing around – what joy: to look at and listen to.

Even after the month of flowering .. the forest is still alive with the pop, pop, pop of the seed heads bursting forth and spreading their bounty over the forest floor. Here again the Karvy has its uses for us humans .. the juice from the flower is used for medicinal purposes while the stems can be used for thatched buildings.

The Monsoon brings the plant to life, turning it green, once the rainy season is over, all that is left is the dry and dead-looking stems – the pattern repeats for seven or so years, and then in the eighth, or when ready, it bursts into a mass flowering. Bees flock to the honey-soaked flowers, that’s when the honey hunters appear to track the bees down for their thick, dark bounty.

Karvy

Honeysuckle, bindweed, sunflowers, agave and karvy – what an odd collection of plants all with extraordinary characteristics .. who would have thought that humans would have spread across the world making use of every possible part of each plant or learning from the visiting fauna ...

... and now we keep finding new uses for these inspiring plants, which feed our pollinators of life – bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, flies, bats, birds, beetles and even midges, let alone thrips and ants .. all thrive ...

or as in “Misalliance” a political allegory concerning a love affair between a honeysuckle and a bindweed .. to amuse us, to teach us .. or as here gently to entertain us

Together, they found them, the very next day
They had pulled up their roots and just shrivelled away.
Deprived of that freedom for which we must fight,
To veer to the left or to veer to the right!
Flanders & Swann singing the song “Misalliance” via You Tube (4 mins)
The Flanders and Swann lyrics can be found here at "Just Some Lyrics"

Another post you might enjoy: Plants as Metal Gatherers

See Wiki for paragraph about circular breathing, sleep disorders and apnea, within the Didgeridoo page

Dear Mr Postman – the weather has turned autumnal ... and I’ve been busy – apart from my own move, my mother has had to move back upstairs .. so yet another upheaval – but surprise, surprise .. she can hear again! Wonderful news .. as I said to her – “well at least I can talk to you again and we can have a conversation .. that’s a good thing” – to which my Mama replied “Is it?” .. but with a big smile! It’s the luck of the drawer whether she’s awake or not – but the staff seem to be enjoying her chatty times!
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters Inspirational Stories