Thank you for your observation, and not wishing to be contentious, but I had always heard that the harebell was a "rose by any other name," the bluebell. The harebell/bluebell being the national flower of Scotland, I was curious to see if there was a distinction, so off to check the dicitonaries:. I have capitalised both words for no other reason other than to make a distinction between both words as they are defined in the dictionary. In Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary, published Edinburgh, Scotland, HAREBELL is defined as the Scottish BLUEBELL (Campanula rotundifolia). To follow up on your description, I then looked up BLUEBELL, which states: In S. Scotland the wood hyacuinth, in Scotland and N. England the HAREBELL. In The American College Dictionary, this definition under BLUEBELL: 1. any of various plants with blue bell-shaped flowers, as the HAREBELL (BLUEBELL of Scotland), or a liliaceous plant, Scilla nonscripta, of the Old World, 2. the lungwort, Meritensia virginica, of the U.S. I then looked under HAREBELL: 1. a low campanlulaceous herb, the BLUEBELL of Scotland. Campanula rotundifolia, with blue, bell-shaped flowers. 2. a liliaceous plant, Scilla nonscripta, with bell-shaped flowers. Maybe the harebell/bluebell grows at different times in Ireland. Incidentally, a friend on this side of the Atlantic returned from a trip in May to Argyll, Scotland, where she sent me a photograph of where the woods were carpeted with bluebells, and so May seems to be the month when this lovely little flower "proliferates." Mary, I think, in this instance, that harebell and bluebell can be interchangeable, but I am not going to argue the point as I am not a horticulturist and must rely on the dictionary for the definitions. Maisie ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mary Simpson" <mary@msimpson.demon.co.uk> To: <irelandgenweb@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, June 04, 2009 5:16 AM Subject: Re: [Irish Genealogy] IRELANDGENWEB Digest, Vol 4, Issue 115 > Sorry to be a bit pedantic - but the harebell is NOT the bluebell. > Different flowers and times of flowering altogether. The harebell is > indeed the wild campanula, and a beautiful little thing it is too, > usually found in grassland or at the roadside edge or between the rocks > on the mountainside from mid to late summer and sometimes on into > Autumn. > The bluebell is a relative of the hyacinth and carpets the woodland > floor normally in May. A glorious expanse of blue, but a fearsome > spreader...... > Mary > On 4 Jun 2009, at 08:00, irelandgenweb-request@rootsweb.com wrote: > >> >> >> Check out the Ireland GenWeb website at: http://www.irelandgenweb.com/ >> It is a good place to get help with your family research. >> Help wanted: County Coordinators >> Add you surname to the Ireland Surname Registry at: >> http://www.connorsgenealogy.net/IrelandList/ >> >> Today's Topics: >> >> 1. "Harebells over Mannin Bay" -- Cecil DAY-LEWIS b. 1904 >> Queen's Co. (Laois) IRE (Jean R.) >> 2. Re: "Harebells over Mannin Bay" -- Cecil DAY-LEWIS b.1904 >> Queen's Co. (Laois) IRE (Mary Egger) >> 3. Derry-born Seamus HEANEY (contemp.) - "The Toome Road" (Jean R.) >> >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> >> Message: 1 >> Date: Wed, 3 Jun 2009 10:15:22 -0700 >> From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> >> Subject: [Irish Genealogy] "Harebells over Mannin Bay" -- Cecil >> DAY-LEWIS b. 1904 Queen's Co. (Laois) IRE >> To: <IrelandGenWeb-L@rootsweb.com> >> Message-ID: <8e0101c9e46e$ea4bee30$451ecac6@jean> >> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1"; >> reply-type=original >> >> HAREBELLS OVER MANNIN BAY >> >> Half moon of moon-pale sand. >> Sea stirs in midnight blue. >> Looking across to the Twelve Pins >> The singular harebells stand. >> >> The sky's all azure. Eye >> To eye with them upon >> Cropped grass, I note the harebells give >> Faint echoes of the sky. >> >> For such a Lilliput host >> To pit their colours against >> Peacock of sea and mountain seems >> Impertinence at least. >> >> These summer commonplaces, >> Seen close enough, confound >> A league of brilliant waves, and dance >> On the grave mountain faces. >> >> Harebells, keep your arresting >> Pose by the strand. I like >> These gestures of the ephemeral >> Against the everlasting. >> >> -- Cecil Day-Lewis, late Poet Laureate of England (born Co. Laois, >> Ireland) >> >> Note - harebells/flowers; pins/mountains; ephemeral/short-lasting; >> Mannin >> Bay/Galway >> Lilliput/tiny >> >> >> >> >> ------------------------------ >> >> Message: 2 >> Date: Wed, 3 Jun 2009 11:41:10 -0500 >> From: "Mary Egger" <campsiehills@sbcglobal.net> >> Subject: Re: [Irish Genealogy] "Harebells over Mannin Bay" -- Cecil >> DAY-LEWIS b.1904 Queen's Co. (Laois) IRE >> To: <irelandgenweb@rootsweb.com> >> Message-ID: <E8EEB7CC6D3D434AB6551E2B568B9275@MaisieEggerPC> >> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1"; >> reply-type=original >> >> No wonder he was made poet laureate! Such glorious imagery! >> >> The harebell is known otherwise as the bluebell, the national flower of >> Scotland (campanula rotundifolia), and songs have been composed on "The >> Bluebells of Scotland".. Not to be confused, the national emblem of >> Scotland is the thistle. >> >> Thank you again, Jean, for the inclusion of so much wonderful poetry. >> >> Maisie >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> >> To: <IrelandGenWeb-L@rootsweb.com> >> Sent: Wednesday, June 03, 2009 12:15 PM >> Subject: [Irish Genealogy] "Harebells over Mannin Bay" -- Cecil >> DAY-LEWIS >> b.1904 Queen's Co. (Laois) IRE >> >> >>> HAREBELLS OVER MANNIN BAY >>> >>> Half moon of moon-pale sand. >>> Sea stirs in midnight blue. >>> Looking across to the Twelve Pins >>> The singular harebells stand. >>> >>> The sky's all azure. Eye >>> To eye with them upon >>> Cropped grass, I note the harebells give >>> Faint echoes of the sky. >>> >>> For such a Lilliput host >>> To pit their colours against >>> Peacock of sea and mountain seems >>> Impertinence at least. >>> >>> These summer commonplaces, >>> Seen close enough, confound >>> A league of brilliant waves, and dance >>> On the grave mountain faces. >>> >>> Harebells, keep your arresting >>> Pose by the strand. I like >>> These gestures of the ephemeral >>> Against the everlasting. >>> >>> -- Cecil Day-Lewis, late Poet Laureate of England (born Co. Laois, >>> Ireland) >>> >>> Note - harebells/flowers; pins/mountains; ephemeral/short-lasting; >>> Mannin >>> Bay/Galway >>> Lilliput/tiny >>> >>> >>> Check out the Ireland GenWeb website at: >>> http://www.irelandgenweb.com/ >>> >>> Great place to get help with your family research. >>> >>> County Clare has been adopted! >>> >>> Help wanted: County Coordinators >>> ------------------------------- >>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >>> IRELANDGENWEB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' >>> without the >>> quotes in the subject and the body of the message >> >> >> >> ------------------------------ >> >> Message: 3 >> Date: Wed, 3 Jun 2009 22:59:46 -0700 >> From: "Jean R." <jeanrice@cet.com> >> Subject: [Irish Genealogy] Derry-born Seamus HEANEY (contemp.) - "The >> Toome Road" >> To: <IrelandGenWeb-L@rootsweb.com> >> Message-ID: <9aa601c9e4d9$aa5b0de0$451ecac6@jean> >> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1"; >> reply-type=original >> >> THE TOOME ROAD >> >> One morning early I met armoured cars >> In convoy, warbling along on powerful tyres, >> All camouflaged with broken alder branches, >> And headphoned soldiers standing up in turrets. >> How long were they approaching down my roads >> As if they owned them? The whole country was sleeping. >> I had rights-of-way, fields, cattle in my keeping, >> Tractors hitched to buckrakes in open sheds, >> Silos, chill gates, wet slates, the greens and reds >> Of outhouse roofs. Whom should I run to tell >> Among all of those with their back doors on the latch >> For the bringer of bad news, that small-hours visitant >> Who, by being expected, might be kept distant? >> Sowers of seed, erectors of headstones ... >> O charioteers, above your dormant guns, >> It stands here still, stands vibrant as you pass, >> The invisible, untoppled omphalos. >> >> -- Seamus Heaney, from "Field Work" (1979) >> >> >> >> ------------------------------ >> >> To contact the IRELANDGENWEB list administrator, send an email to >> IRELANDGENWEB-admin@rootsweb.com. >> >> To post a message to the IRELANDGENWEB mailing list, send an email to >> IRELANDGENWEB@rootsweb.com. >> >> __________________________________________________________ >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to >> IRELANDGENWEB-request@rootsweb.com >> with the word "unsubscribe" without the quotes in the subject and the >> body of the >> email with no additional text. >> >> >> End of IRELANDGENWEB Digest, Vol 4, Issue 115 >> ********************************************* >> > > Check out the Ireland GenWeb website at: http://www.irelandgenweb.com/ > > Great place to get help with your family research. > > County Clare has been adopted! > > Help wanted: County Coordinators > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > IRELANDGENWEB-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message