Cornflower facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Centaurea cyanus |
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Centaurea
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| Centaurea cyanus |
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Centaurea cyanus, commonly known as cornflower or bachelor's button, is an annual flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native to Europe. In the past it often grew as a weed in cornfields (in the broad sense of the word "corn", referring to grains, such as wheat, barley, rye, or oats), hence its name. It is now endangered in its native habitat by agricultural intensification, particularly over-use of herbicides, destroying its habitat. It is also, however, through introduction as an ornamental plant in gardens and a seed contaminant in crop seeds, now naturalised in many other parts of the world, including North America and parts of Australia.
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Description
Cornflower is an annual plant growing to 16-35 inches tall, with grey-green branched stems. The leaves are 1–4 cm long. The flowers are most commonly an intense blue colour, produced in flowerheads 1.5–3 cm diameter, with a ring of a few large, spreading ray florets surrounding a central cluster of disc florets. The blue pigment is protocyanin, which in roses is red. It flowers all summer.
Distribution
Centaurea cyanus is native to temperate Europe, but is widely naturalized outside its native range. It has been present in the British Isles as an (ancient introduction) since the Iron Age. In the United Kingdom it has declined from 264 sites to just 3 sites in the last 50 years. In reaction to this, the conservation charity Plantlife named it as one of 101 species it would actively work to bring 'Back from the Brink'.
In Ireland, in Co.Clare (H9) Centaurea cyanus is recorded in arable fields as very rare and almost extinct. while in the north-east of Ireland it was abundant before 1930s.
Names
The common names bachelor's button, bluebottle, boutonniere flower, hurtsickle or cyani flower are also used. It may also be referred to as basketflower, though the term also refers to the Plectocephalus group of Centaurea, which is probably a distinct genus. "Cornflower" is also used for chicory, and a few other Centaurea species; to distinguish C. cyanus from these it is sometimes called common cornflower.
Cultivation
It is grown as an ornamental plant in gardens, where several cultivars have been selected with varying pastel colours, including pink and purple. Cornflower is also grown for the cut flower industry in Canada for use by florists. The most common colour variety for this use is a doubled blue variety such as 'Blue Boy' or 'Blue Diadem'. White, pink, lavender and black (actually a very dark maroon) are also used but less commonly.
Light requirements: full sun. Water requirements: high-average water daily. Soil pH requirements: neutral (6.6-7.5) to mildly alkaline (7.6-7.8).
Uses
The cornflower is considered a beneficial weed, and its edible flower can be used for culinary decoration, for example to add color to salads. In herbalism, a decoction of cornflower is effective in treating conjunctivitis, and as a wash for tired eyes. Cornflowers have been used and prized historically for their blue pigment. Cornflowers are often used as an ingredient in some tea blends and herbal teas, and is famous in the Lady Grey blend of Twinings.
Folklore and symbolism
In folklore, cornflowers were worn by young men in love; if the flower faded too quickly, it was taken as a sign that the man's love was not returned.
The blue cornflower has been the national flower of Estonia since 1968 and symbolizes daily bread to Estonians. It is also the symbol of the Estonian political party, People's Union, the Finnish political party, National Coalition Party, and the Swedish political party, Liberal People's Party, and has since the dawn of the 20th century been a symbol for social liberalism there. It is the official flower of the Swedish province of Östergötland and the school flower of Winchester College and also of Dulwich College where it is said to have been the favourite flower of the founder, Edward Alleyn.
The blue cornflower was one of the national symbols of Germany. This is partly due to the story that when Queen Louise of Prussia was fleeing Berlin and pursued by Napoleon's forces, she hid her children in a field of cornflowers and kept them quiet by weaving wreaths for them from the flowers. The flower thus became identified with Prussia, not least because it was the same color as the Prussian military uniform. After the unification of Germany in 1871, it went on to become a symbol of the country as a whole.
Due to its traditional association with Germany, the cornflower has been made the official symbol of the annual German-American Steuben Parade.
In France the Bleuet de France is the symbol of the 11th November 1918 armistice and, as such, a common symbol for veterans (especially the now defunct poilus of World War I), similar to the Remembrance poppies worn in the United Kingdom and in Canada.
The cornflower is also the symbol for motor neurone disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
A Cornflower design (Blue Cornflower) was used by Corning Glass Works for the initial release of Corning Ware Pyroceram Cookware. Its popularity in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia was so high that it became the symbol of Corning Glass Works.
Images for kids
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Flowering shoot of cornflower. I. Disk-floret in vertical section
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A honey bee on a cornflower
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Raw cornflower petals used as a dessert decoration ingredient on strawberry ice cream
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Logo of the Conservative People's Party of Estonia
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Isaac Levitan, Cornflowers, 1894.
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Sergei Osipov, Cornflowers, 1976.
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Igor Grabar, Group Portrait with Cornflowers, 1914.
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Vincent van Gogh, Wheat Field with Cornflowers, 1890.
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See also
In Spanish: Centaurea cyanus para niños
