I spent the day with my friend and fellow 365er Laraine. We had lunch and went in search of photos together. We spent most of the time at Grey Towers the summer home of Governor Pinchot and his family. I'll be posting more shots from our excursion today as the week progresses along with some information on Grey Towers The Fiddlehead ferns really caught my attention so I'm starting off with them.
For those of you who'd like to know a little more about this interesting plant, here's a brief introduction from Wikipedia:
Fiddleheads or Fiddlehead greens are the furled fronds of a young fern, harvested for use as a vegetable. Left on the plant, each fiddlehead would unroll into a new frond (circinate vernation). As fiddleheads are harvested early in the season before the frond has opened and reached its full height, they are cut fairly close to the ground. Fiddleheads have antioxidant activity, are a source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and are high in iron and fiber. Certain varieties of fiddleheads have been shown to be carcinogenic.
The Fiddlehead resembles the curled ornamentation (called a scroll) on the end of a stringed instrument, such as a violin. It is also called a crozier, after the curved staff used by bishops, which has its origins in the shepherd's crook.
Thank you Cindy, Nicole, Kerri, Maggie, Rick, Pam, Sally, Dione, Alia, Suze, and Donald!
For those of you who were curious I've added some info into the commentary above. Fiddleheads are very prolific around here and when not harvested early to be eaten, the fern grows quite large. And yes, I have eaten them. They are usually sauteed lightly with butter. Some folks will throw in a little flavoring- such as garlic- but I like them plain or with a little taragon. The taste is similar to asparagus.
Love these curves against the texture of the stone wall. Thanks for the info, Ann. I always want to harvest some and try them in the spring but I really don't know which ones are edible or if all of them are. I need an expert forager along. Thanks, also, for the follow.
Very interesting. You called them fiddleback? I've read about fiddlehead ferns and the edible nature of them but don't know if that is the kind of fern we have here or not.
@barbsmith Thanks! As far as I know Barb they are all edible, but the best are when they are like this- before they've begun to unfurl. @demmie Thank you Demmie! @jesperani Thank you Jennifer! @stimuloog Thank you Marloes! @prttblues Thanks Bev! I had been focusing on close-ups and then looked up. It was one of those- oh, how did I miss that?! moments! @pandorasecho Good catch Dixie- I misnamed the photo! I will have to fix that being the perfectionist that I am! I'm sure it's the same fern- we have similar type forests as you, just without the Redwoods!
isn't it amazing that although we did take similar shots, i suspect many of them will be very different. i love how the fiddleheads look against the stone wall ~
@taffy Thank you Taffy! @eniaral Thanks Laraine! I was tempted to post a shot of the "hole in the wall" today, but after processing a couple, I decided to go with something completely different. That way everyone will get to see more of Grey Towers. I also got some really great close-ups of these plants, but I'll wait for a rainy day to post one.
We used to go and picked them when they are still tiny. they make a great dish. I've never seen any grow that high without unravelling already. looking good against that stone wall.
fiddle-dees are back, aren't they? i see them all the time at the allan gardens though but the reddish or brownish variety. the black and white makes for an attractive abstract. well done.
@summerfield Thank you Vikki! Right now these are predominantly green but I think by summer's end they will have some brown/red highlights. I really liked the contrast of bricks and curls.
Thank you Cindy, Nicole, Kerri, Maggie, Rick, Pam, Sally, Dione, Alia, Suze, and Donald!
For those of you who were curious I've added some info into the commentary above. Fiddleheads are very prolific around here and when not harvested early to be eaten, the fern grows quite large. And yes, I have eaten them. They are usually sauteed lightly with butter. Some folks will throw in a little flavoring- such as garlic- but I like them plain or with a little taragon. The taste is similar to asparagus.
@demmie Thank you Demmie!
@jesperani Thank you Jennifer!
@stimuloog Thank you Marloes!
@prttblues Thanks Bev! I had been focusing on close-ups and then looked up. It was one of those- oh, how did I miss that?! moments!
@pandorasecho Good catch Dixie- I misnamed the photo! I will have to fix that being the perfectionist that I am! I'm sure it's the same fern- we have similar type forests as you, just without the Redwoods!
@eniaral Thanks Laraine! I was tempted to post a shot of the "hole in the wall" today, but after processing a couple, I decided to go with something completely different. That way everyone will get to see more of Grey Towers. I also got some really great close-ups of these plants, but I'll wait for a rainy day to post one.
Thanks Diane!
Thanks Vesna!