DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE HERB CALLED "BEDSTRAW"

DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THE HERB CALLED "BEDSTRAW"
Spring is almost here! 

 But, we did have thunder storms in January.  The old saying is "thunder in January, freeze in April" so, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it won't be too bad.

The purple blooms are my redbud tree.  Always so beautiful!

Those little white roses are my lady banksia.  It always blooms late winter, early spring.  It climbs way up high in the trees around it.

Do you know about the herb bedstraw?

It is a very common weed and spreads out.  That one plant that you see in this picture has one tiny root and is very easy to rake or pull up.  Because of the cold weather and rainy days, I got behind in my weeding.  I guess I could stuff some pillowcases and let the outside cats lie on them.

  I googled bedstraw and look what it says about this herb:

"It has been suggested that this herb, which was constantly used for stuffing mattresses, was the actual bedding of the manger at Bethlehem." (Google)

Bedstraw is an imported common name; a yellow-flowered variant (G. verum) was used to stuff mattresses in medieval times, taking advantage of its pleasant aroma. According to one of the many apocryphal Christian legends, it was purportedly used in the crèche for the bedding of the infant Jesus, the originally white flowers turning gold in recognition of his divinity. 

(Hiker's Notebook Google)

Such lovely irises!  They opened yesterday.

In the background, you can see lots of larkspur.  I got them planted a little late, but I do think they will be blooming by Easter.  I have no idea what is on the left side of the picture.  In the fall, I threw out some seed packages that I didn't plant last spring.  I'm really wondering what it is.

Have a very peaceful weekend.