A bloodier than usual bloody cranesbill

I've often wondered why bloody cranesbill Geranium sangineum is so-called, because the flower is magenta, not the colour of blood at all. According to Richard Mabey, in his Flora Britannica, the name originally referred to the redness of the stalks, but it seems odd that they should take prerefence over the flowers in the naming of the plant. Anyway, this one is fairly typical ......

....... but this one is much bloodier. Still not the colour of real blood, but closer to it.

This single red-hued plant grows amongst the typical ones on the cliffs at Seaham on the Durham coast.

A couple of years ago I collected seed from it and some of the plants are flowering in the garden this year, but so far they are all magenta blooms.

So now I'm going to try rooting a side shoot from a small cutting. 

Interesting varieties of wild flowers were the mainstay of gardens in these islands long before exotic species were introduced from overseas, and often appear on the decorative borders of medieval manuscripts, so bringing this variety into cultivation will be a continuation of a long-established horticultural tradition.

A Day on the Durham coast

Some plants and animals from a day walking on the cliffs between Seaham and Hawthorn Dene on the Durham coast last week





















Dozens of fully grown drinker moth caterpillars on the steps leading down to Blast beach ...






















..... some had even made it all the way down to the beach

Masses of bird'sfoot trefoil in full bloom on the edge of the limestone quarry

Bloody cranesbill coming into bloom on he magnesian limestone grassland

Wonderful display of buttercups in the meadows at Hawthorn Dene

Not many early purple orchids, but some nice specimens

Some glorious displays of hawthorn near Hawthorn Dene. Best year for hawthorn blossom that I can remember

Common milkwort around the quarry area

There's not a lot of sea pink along this coastline but in full bloom























A goldfinch that seemed to be ill and was reluctant to fly, but with no visible signs of injury

.... and finally, fulmars soaring along the cliffs

Botanical artillery...

Cranesbills are wild flowers with a particularly violent method of dispersing their seeds, that involves a catapult mechanism and is particularly well developed in bloody cranesbill Geranium sanguineum.

Cranesbills belong to the genus Geranium, a name that's derived from the Greek word geranos, meaning 'crane' (the bird, not the mechanical device) and nicely describes the central axis of the fruit, which resembles a crane's beak.

There are five egg shaped seed containers at the base of that long beak, which is formed from five long strips of plant tissue that are firmly attached to the tip of the beak and develop tremendous internal tensions as they dry out. They are botanical springs and when their inner tensions reach a critical point they break free at the base and curl away from it with enormous force......

.... so that they curl upwards with the egg-shaped containers attached, hurling out the seed which lies in each container, in much the same way as those dog ball throwers that dog walkers use. After the seeds have been dispersed this elegant candelabra-like structure is left behind.

Bloody cranesbill is the official county wild flower of Northumberland.