Flower Power - Sunday Stamps

I've an interesting first day cover for you this week (thanks to my pet market stallholder again)

This poem from Curtis's Botanical Magazine in 1824 accompanies the ten 19th century flower paintings.

First Day Cover -6January 1997

The names of the flowers and the artists (of whom I had never heard) are included on the information card along with the poem. I won't spell out the Latin names of the flowers - I'll just give the names I know them by.

Top row: Gentian; Magnolia, Camellia, Tulips, Fuschia

Btm row: Tulips, Gazania, Iris, Amaryllis, Passion Flower

The painters:

Top: G D Ehret, G D Ehret, A Chandler, G D Ehret, A J Withers

Btm: G D Ehret, C C Sowerby, G D Ehret, P J Redoute, G D Ehret

You can find more flowers or signs of Spring at Viridian's sunday stamps 63

Spring for Sunday Stamps

As soon as I saw this week's theme I knew just what to post. These stamps were issued on 21 March 1979.

I also took these pictures in my garden to share as well.

Spring over  to Viridian's Postcard Blog for more stamps.

England's Ecological Poet

By chance I came across a copy of of the Autumn 2009 issue of Countryside Voice, the magazine of the Campaign To Protect Rural England.

This contained an interesting article, Nature's Interpreter, on John Clare. with some extracts of his poetry. Clare's cottage in the village of Helpston in Cambridgeshire is now a museum.

Details of the cottage and Clare may be found at www.clarecottage.org. On the home page they feature an extract of a poem for the month; it is very appropriate for this time of year:

Sweet are the omens of approaching Spring
When gay the elder sprouts her winged leaves;
When rootling robins carol-welcomes sing,
And sparrows chelp glad tidings from the eaves,
What lovely prospects wait each wakening hour,
When each new day some novelty displays;
How sweet the sun-beam melts the crocus flower,
Whose borrow'd pride shines dizen'd in his rays:
Sweet, new-laid hedges flush their tender greens;
Sweet peep the arum-leaves their shelter screens;
Ah! sweet is all which I am denied to share:
Want's painful hindrance sticks me to her stall:-
But still Hope's smiles unpoint the thorns of Care,
Since Heaven's eternal Spring is free for all.