#oddity comic

Flowers that mean FALL

Autumn is the season of harvest!

Autumn means lots of nice foods that have gotten ripe and pretty and dEEElicious all summer long! Autumn means a lot of food to store up and keep packed away for winter!

Autumn means orange. Lots and lots of orange. Also some whites, reds and yellows, but MOSTLY it means orange~

CALENDULAS.(“tagetes erecta”)!!!!CALENDULAS EVERYWHERE! IT’S DAY OF THE DEAD SEASON BAYBEEEE! GET OUT THOSE CALENDULAS!!!

Wintersquash Flowers.(“cucurbita pepo”),better known to you as “pumpkins”. While their flowers have probably all bloomed and died by the time they’re ready for autumn, you can always make fake ones. Or! Better yet? Use dead pumpkin flowers! They’re still pretty to me! (Note: DO NOT use or handle dead pumpkin flowers. The hairs on this flower can irritate the skin).

Apple Blossoms.(“malus domestica”) and Pomegranate Flowers.(“punica granatum”) are also usually dead around this time, but I don’t care!

Seeing them makes me think of their delicious fruits and their delicious fruits makes me think of autumn: apple blossoms all soft and white and pomegranates all red as the fruit they’re going be! So juicy! But the absolute best flower that grows this time of year?

The kind you HAVE to have around because they’re that big and that pretty and that tasty? Sunflowers.(“helianthus annuus”)!

Everyone loves sunflowers! I love their seeds and how easy they make it for you to get their seeds. They’re so sunny and bright!

They’re so sunny and bright! So Yellow!

So true MOUSE!

Good autumn tiddings, one and all!

-HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!!!

Don’t go any further!! Some plants don’t want to be your friends. Some plants REALLY don’t want to be eaten, smelled, picked or even touched.

They may look beautiful to you, a person, but they are anything but beautiful to touch.

This is NOT a bouquet-tutorial.

These are flowers you need to recognize in the wild and you need to not touch because they are poisonous and mean danger.

One of the most deadly plants to humans has two scary-sounding names; Monkshood/Wolfsbane.(“aconitum”). Some humans carried wolfsbane around because they thought that werewolves and vampires hated it.

Really the complete opposite is true: wolfsbane is one of the few plants vampires and werewolves can eat and they like it very much.

um....yeah...thanks Flo...

Humans should NEVER touch or especially eat wolfsbane. It is full of alkalines that can kill you in hours if you get enough of them in you. If you’re human and you see what looks like wolfsbane, always stay clear and probably keep your pets away from it. 

Deadly Nightshade.(“atropa bella donna”), also known as “Belladonna” flowers, or 'beautiful death'.

It’s not just a spooky name; when they bloom they are a very pretty purple wildflower that looks like a long-bell. Their fruits are these black berries.

Belladonnas/Deadly Nightshades must NEVER be touched or eaten...

Even their giant cousin flowers, Angel's Trumpets.(“brugmansia”) are toxic, which is why you must never eat them and always wash your hands after touching.

Hemlock.(“conium maculatum”) is a very poisonous plant. It grows in bushes and the tips are covered in very teeny tiny flowers. You must never handle or touch hemlock- but a lot of people did because it’s a cousin-plant to parsley. 

One of the prettiest flowers that you mustn’t touch, eat or sniff is called Oleander.(“nerium”).

You’d never know they are poisonous if you saw them though; they're very pretty soft-pink flowers with a little extra pair of petals in their center. If you eat too many you may get really sick and throw them up. Their sap can hurt your skin and eyes.

 Buttercups.(“ranunculus”) (yes, I know, they don’t look like cups) and Milkweed.(“asclepias”) both taste so bad upon eating that you’re almost sure to throw them up- but you still got to be careful with them even when you aren’t eating them. Always wash your hands or use gloves after picking buttercups and milkweed.

Poppies.(“papaver rhoeas”) and Azaleas.(“rhododendra”) are also toxic and should never be in reach of babies (because babies put everything in their mouths). 

And then there’s Lily-of-the-Valley.(“convallaria majalis”). You’ve seen these before, especially if you live in Europe.

These are little flowers that dangle in rows off a stem like little bells. When the flowers are gone they give way to cute little berries. But trust me, you must NEVER eat any part of this plant, no matter how cute it looks!

Lily-of-the-Valleys are VERY poisonous and cause abdominal pain and skipping heartbeats if you eat them. 

Y’see, there ARE times when synthetic/faux flowers come in handy. If you MUST have something like one of these plants in your mix, spring for a fake, definitely non toxic one…

You'll live longer. Trust me!

Oddities in October - Mouse's Applied Nursery Rhymes, or Mousey's Lousy Nursery Crimes

 Mouse sings Flo a proper song of sleep. 

For as long as people have been around people have been doing this thing called “dying”.

People give out flowers when other people die: flowers for the deceased, flowers for the deceased’s family, flowers that the deceased would have liked....

Really, there’s NO BETTER TIME for flowers than dead time.

Here’s some flowers to make your funeral feel a little more comfortable~

Calla Lilies.(“calla palustris”) are a staple. They’re big and white and sad looking and represent ‘innocence” and “beauty” in death. They kinda make me think of ghosts…but, y’know, pretty ghosts! 

Yellow Calendula or Marigolds.(“tagetes erecta”) are also really popular. They don’t smell or taste very good to insects so they protect bodies from flies, but also- they are very pretty! They kinda tell you when you’re dead that life carries on and there’s color and hope in everything, even after your ‘everything’.

It’s why they’re so popular on the Days of the Dead; in places like Mexico, people fill entire roads with their petals to lead the dead to a happy resting place! 

Pink Carnations.(“dianthus caryophyllus”) are very pretty!! They’re good for every occasion -carnations, I mean- but light pink ones are a ‘subtle’ mourning flower...

So are White Chrysanthemums.(“chrysanthemum × morifolium”; they’re hybrids y’see!) they tend to mean so many different things but when they’re white they mean courage and valor. 

Speaking of valor -don’t eat them-, there’s Poppies.(“papaveroideae”). Red and orange poppies are great for a valiant soul and a person who did great service -no, seriously DON’T EAT THEM! They make people VERY sick-. 

But my very favorite mourning flower is the Red Spiderlilly.(“lycoris”). Lookit how cute it is! It looks so pretty; like a jumping spray of fresh blood.

Very formal. Monty Cristo says it’s his favorite death-flower too! 

Thoughts are with you~

What could possibly be a better inspiration for an artistic person than flowers? In mean, other than fruit I guess…or trees -Or mushrooms...which ARE NOT plants-! Or comic book characters and bad dreams...

Well, flowers can mean “creativity” too! They’re GREAT for creative people! 

I’m upset!

I DON'T feel like doing a bit on flowers today!!!

Why would you even READ THIS? I wouldn’t!!

Here’s some flowers that show off my feelings. Maybe you’ll GET IT~

Snapdragons.(“antirrhinum”). They have ‘dragon’ in their name and they mean that you’re deceitful if you have one.

When they die they look like sad ghost skulls. I don’t care.

Dark/black Dahlias.(something, something “Asteraceae” whateverdoesn'tmatter…) mean the opposite of what regular dahlias mean. They represent 'betrayal' cuz you’re a BACKSTABBER!

When dahlias die they look really ugly and gross. 

Lady Slippers.(“cypripedioideae”), or "slipper orchids” are rare and so they mean sudden and unexpected things, like you. When they die they’re gone forever....

Crab Blossoms.(“malus”) aren’t even crabs! They’re the flowers that bloom out of crab blossom trees. They can mean nice things, sometimes, but they also mean 'ill will'.

When they die they barely look like a flower at all. 

Flytraps.(“dionaea muscipula”) aren’t even flowers and you’re a JERK if you hurt them or don’t take care of them!!! So, really, you’re a jerk if you get one at all because getting a flytrap is a sign that you’re being 'tricked' or 'deceived'.

Dead flytraps are really sad to look at cuz they turn completely black and shriveled...

Y’know? Some people say that flowers and plants have inverted meanings then they originally had when they die.

That, in their death, flowers mean different things. The pretty things they said are gone but so to are the mean things they did...

...except I DON’T feel that way right now!!

Get your dead flowers out of my face!!!

Some people think, because flowers are flowers and look nice, there can’t ever be anything wrong with giving one…this is wrong.

There are lots of flowers which mean VERY unkind things.

Kinda sad…I think all these flowers are pretty…but as a gift from the Victorians, here’s some flowers to give to someone you don’t really like; or, to show someone in your story is NOT very likable~

We’ll start with Petunias.(just “petunia”. no common name). There’s nothing wrong with them, in fact they don’t always mean ‘mean’ things, but one meaning for purple or pink petunias is definitely 'resentment'. 

Hydrangeas.(“hydrangeaceae”) are flowers that come in a pre-set bouquet in nature… and one of their most famous meanings, besides 'gratitude', is 'heartlessness' of a very cruel person.

Tiger lilies (the ones with stripe-spots) often mean 'classy' or 'wealth', but an Orange Lily.(“lilium”) means 'hate' or 'hatred' of some kind. You don’t want to get an orange lily as a gift...

Fumarias.(“fumaria officinalis”) are these warm-purple flowers that look kind of like lavender, but they mean 'anger', hence the 'fume' part of their name. 

Yellow Hyacinths.(“hyacinthus”) are a really bad sign; it means that someone is jealous of you.

Finally, there’s Tansies.(“tanacetum vulgare”). Tansies are little yellow flowers that look like macaroni noodles and come in clumps. If you see them, it’s because someone is being very hostile or even declaring a war on you personally. There are literally no nice meanings behind tansies.

They’re an ANGRY little flower....

...I know the feeling...

So…these flowers aren’t “BAD” per se....like-NO flowers are “bad” flowers, I think.

But, if you get them in a bouquet you might want to be careful…and if you’re not trying to tell someone else to be careful, you might want to skip these.

These are great story-telling flowers; NOT so much great conversation starters...

Angel Trumpets.(“brugmansia”) are big and pretty, but they often mean ‘take caution’...because they’re poisonous.

You must always wash your hands after touching them. If you ask me, the angels that use them don’t seem very nice…

Rhododendrons are better known as Azaleas.(“rhododendra”). They’re really pretty flowers, but they also mean 'caution' as a rule. 

Think of them like a warning flare. A very festive warning flare...

Another cautionary flower that is really pretty but looks like a tiny warning sign are Red Columbines.(“aquilegia”). They also kinda look like little fireworks before they fully bloom; and they mean 'anxiousness' and 'timidness'...definitely wouldn’t know anything about that...

Begonia.(“begoniaceae”) flowers are also a symbol of caution; not as much as Azaleas but pretty important; and what’s great about Begonias is their leaves are also really pretty.

The whole plant is telling you a friendly ‘beware’, so heed their warning!

Candytufts.(“iberis”) are flowers that come in cute little batches but they mean ‘indifference’ and ‘more than meets the eye’.

Finally, for a person who wants a single flower with 'quite' the bloom, there’s the White Orchid.(“orchidaceae”). Orchids mean all kinds of things...but the white orchid is very particular and stays true to its big ole’ stem it blooms on. 

It knows something you don't...

Be careful….