Beauty and the Beholder

By luigi_pagano

Thu, 04 Aug 2022
  • 883 reads
6 comments
 

It's easy to admire
beautiful flowers
vibrant with colours
and fragrant scent
Roses, carnations
violets, orchids; 
effulgent creations
of Mother Nature.

But some gardeners
give the cold-shoulder
to what they consider
to be ugly plants,
exotic flowers
that have odd shapes
and are distinguished
by unpleasant odours.

Though they are given
scientific names
they are all known
by other epithets.
Darlingtonia californica
for instance
is referred to
as  Cobra Lily.

Others, called
Earwig Orchid,
Corpse Flower,
Black Bat Flower
Dutchman's Pipe
are among plants
that are disliked
by cognoscenti.

I always stand up
for the underdog
and I'm here to defend
the reputation
of these fall guys.
As Plato said: “Beauty
lies in the eyes
of the beholder”.

 

© Luigi Pagano 2022

Certificate U
Poem
Mutevoli pensieri
Nature

Comments

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

That's quite a list of flowers to think about in your poem Luigi. I agree with you, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I personally have a dislike for the cactus, but it can produce some stunning flowers, so isn't all bad.

I was intrigued by this poem and will have to look up some of those names, which I've never heard of before.

Thank you for sharing.

Jenny. xx

 

Submitted by luigi_pagano on

Dear Jenny, here are the scientific names that I came across while I was looking for ugly plants

Darlingtonia californica
Ophrys Regis-Ferdinandii
Amorphophallus titanum
Stapelia gigantea
Tacca chantrieri
Aristolochia grandiflora

Luigi xx

 

Submitted by skinner_jennifer on

Thanks for the thumbs up yes on those flowers Luigi. I will look them up.

Jenny. xx

 

Submitted by luigi_pagano on

Have fun. smiley

Luigi xx

 

Submitted by Rhiannonw on

I did look them up, and wasn't convinced of their ugliness, though I gather it is the smell of the corpse flower that is off-putting. I suppose none of them are delicate, though the detail probably is. The earwig orchid was more attractive than a real earwig I thought! A bit like the lovely bee orchid. Such unusual, intriguingly detailed flowers. Now when people try to 'create' fictional 'alien' creatures, they always seem much more plain ugly!  (Thank you for bringing them to attention!) Rhiannon

 

Submitted by luigi_pagano on

Perhaps the prejudice that some people have against these flowers is due to the fact that they are uncommon and not domestically cultivated. As you have discovered they are undeserving of vituperation and that is exactly the viewpoint conveyed by the last stanza. I am glad that you have found the subject informative and of interest.

Luigi x