I love roses. Voluptuous, sensuous, multi-petalled roses are my favourites. I lose myself in the folds and shadows of each unfurled petal...and in the process of meditating on nature's mandela, I find myself again.
Just before World War I, American poet Gertrude Stein wrote Sacred Emily, and the words, "a rose is a rose, is a rose, is a rose." Things are what they are.
Not on April Fools' Day! These gorgeous roses fool the eye, because they are in fact, Ranunculus, or Persian Buttercups!
Looking closely, you can see the distinguishing paper fine petals of the ranunculus with their linear, rather than branching veins. Rose petals are not as transluscent. The stems of a rose, are straight and woody, whereas, ranunculus stems are softer and have a tendency to bend and curve in all directions. Ranunculus is from the Latin for "little frog", and these marsh growing plants have froglike centres, which are often green. The buds too, have a distinct cup shape, with a flat top, whereas rosebuds have a more teardrop shape with a pointy tip. You can't see this in a photograph - unlike roses, ranunculus have no scent.
They do come in a variety of vibrant colours, ranging from snow white, to cream, apricot, baby pink, deep pink, violet, light yellow, deep yellow, orange, burnt orange, and red. I bought two tall bouquets of ranunculus from a sidewalk floral display on Yonge Street on Thursday afternoon, and photographed them for the next three days, in sunshine and snow shadows (Mother Nature played an early April Fools' Day joke on Toronto this weeked!)
Photographs Copyright of: Ruth Adams, Widow's Endorphins Photographic Images Incorporated.
