Wild and Weedy Wednesday – Buttercups

Chris Mousseau

Cathy has a wonderful, hilly property in Germany – she’s started a meme on her Herbs and Words blog exploring the virtues of common ‘weeds’ she finds in her garden. Such a great idea! We have so many beautiful plants growing wild in fields and roadsides here in Canada – many native but many introduced over the past few centuries. Some can be invasive but others, not so much, or easily controlled/pulled when discovered. One of my favourite ‘weeds’ is a buttercup I find here and there in my garden. – Buttercups are a type of Ranunculus, and the ones I find are likely a Ranunculus acris, or meadow buttercup, native to Europe and parts of Asia but now widely distributed around the world..

I find it challenging to photograph these bright yellow flowers: not only does the shiny, reflector like petals mock my lens but the camera aperture needs to be adjusted for a large depth of field since the flowers of course don’t appear on a flat plane. I have boyhood memories of picking buttercups while walking to school, or playing in a field dotted with them. They are poisonous, of course, and farmers don’t appreciate seeing them in a pasture, but in my garden they help create contrast in texture, height and colour, and act as a great foil to other plants, such as with this giant red peony now opening.

The other great thing about this buttercup is the foliage. It’s a perennial and as the leaves reveal themselves in mid spring their jagged mottledness is a treat.

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

8 Comments

  1. I grinned at your mention of the flowers’ reflectivity. I hadn’t noticed it until the first time I tried to photograph one of our species. It was a challenge, for sure. Otherwise: that red peony is a show-stopper. The ones I knew growing up always were shades of pink, rose, or white.

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    1. I was thinking this morning about childhood encounters with buttercups – seem to remember something about holding one beneath your chin to see the reflection…?? This peony is definitely spectacular!

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  3. If the yellow of the buttercup is reflected under your chin, you like butter, according to the myths of my childhood. 🙂 I’m envious of your red peony.

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  4. Lovely photos Chris. 😃 As children we used to hold it under each other’s chins and ask if we liked butter… never understood the sense of it, but you could see the glow on your chin!
    I think you are brave letting it flower next to your peony… it spreads so fast and is tough to remove here if the soil is dry! It does look pretty though, next to that deep red. 😃👍

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