Maypop and a Ballerina
Maypop & Ballerina
Maypop Fruit
Growing up in the rural areas of Trenton, Georgia and northern Alabama, I remember, in the summertime, walking along the sandy dirt roads, dragging a stick, talking with my brother when we would see this beautiful
lacy, purple flower growing on a vine. Each of us enjoyed this flower for different reasons. I would break off a stem holding the flower, then, if you notice in the very center, it looks like many arms. I would break off all but two, then hold it up to the light and twist back and forth. The delicate flower twirling made me think of a ballerina, dancing.
Now, my brother loved picking the fruit, plopping it down on the ground and stomping on it. I always thought that's where it got the name Maypop, because the fruit may pop and it may not. Now I find it's technical name is Passiflora incarnata. A big name for such a delicate flower.
It's been years since I've seen a Maypop. I thought it was just a wild vine. If you want a Maypop, you can buy the seed and plant it to run up your mailbox or some other area in your garden. If you see one, try making it into a ballerina!
4 comments:
Just stopping in to say hi. I've never seen a maypop before. It's a beauty!
Oh, I meant to leave my url: http://bobsanchez1.blogspot.com
My parents had these growing for years on their house in Wisconsin and called it Passion Flower. The number of stamens, petals, etc. all were related to various parts of Christ's passion, so they said.
www.rosemaryfifield.com
They are gorgeous. They're not the same as passion fruit, are they?
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