Woodland cloaked in white:
invasion of Old Man’s Beard.
Whisker trimming time.
#
As someone who can’t resist sharing offbeat historical facts, I learned today that the French name for old man’s beard is ‘herbe aux gueux’ (the rascal’s or beggar’s herb).
Apparently, beggars used to rub the acrid sap from this plant on themselves to give their skin a sore and ulcerated appearance, so that passers-by would pity them and cough up donations of money, food, or clothing.
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Sarah Potter Writes 
Well how do you like them apples? I’m French and I never heard that one!
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Well. there you are, Dale. No wonder you’re good at cooking, if you’re French 🙂 Perhaps I should challenge you to tell me some less known snippet of English social history in return!
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Ooohhh… going to have to get my thinking cap on for that one!
As for the good cook part… don’t know how much my being French helps – but we do love to “receive” big crowds so we learn to make large batches of whatever!
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That little extra tidbit of info made me squirm. 😯 Love the image and haiku, Sarah.
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Won’t make you squirm further, Sylvia, by telling you some of the other things beggars did to themselves to increase their incomes! Would rather have you enjoying my haiku 🙂
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Ge, thanks. That’s a relief. 🙂
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Oooh, great idea. It might get me a couple of days off work. Nice post – great minds think alike. xxx
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Such extreme measures are probably best not taken, as it might alarm the health visitor, re the possibility of a certain little person catching some red blistery disease off his dad!
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Our health visitor has just been and she is lovely. She is the same health visitor I had for Amélie too. She is not a big fan of blistery diseases!
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It’s good to have continuity, re health visitors (provided you like them of course!).
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Wonderful picture and Haiku…
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Thank you, David 🙂
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what a bit of info here- but lovely haiku and image Sarah!
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And that’s minor (on the gruesome front) compared to what some of those beggars got up to, in order to raise funds!
I’m glad you liked the haiku and image, Cybele 🙂
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Well I never knew that Sarah, what a fascinating little factoid you share with us! Love the Haiku too…
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Thank you, Sherri 🙂 And am glad the little factoid fascinated you.
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A lively haiku that’s also a natural-history lesson. I love it, Sarah!
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Thank you, Leigh 🙂
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Lovely Sarah, I don’t think this is a plant I’ve come across yet, but now if I find one I’ll be really pleased 🙂
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Fabulous haiku and absolutely enthralling historical fact! Very intriguing! Ebullient cheers,
smiling toad
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Thank you, so much, smilingtoad 🙂
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I LOVE this, Sarah. You have such a sharp sense of humor, and it can come out in three short lines. Also, that is a very interesting fun fact about this particular herb.
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Thanks, Naomi 🙂 Hee, hee, hee, I think you’ve just made an unintentional pun of your own here, by commenting on my “sharp” sense of humour, what with my haiku’s mention of whisker trimming!
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That’s cutting to the chase!
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