Welcome to Saturday Snippets ..my one-word prompt today is “Bluebell ”

Where did the word “Bluebell ” come from? It is like every one-word prompt my muse just drops it in my lap…then the fun begins…lol…Seriously though it seemed apt as we are now in the month of April said to be the second month of spring and the bluebells will start appearing they are one of the last of the spring flowers to bloom…Bluebell woods are one of my all-time favourite places to walk in spring…

What does the word “Bluebell” conjure up for you?

The Bluebell Railway, Sussex, England.

Britain’s oldest preserved standard-gauge railway, it shows off the area’s beautiful bluebells as they come into bloom each spring.

Run by volunteers, it takes passengers through 11 miles of gorgeous Sussex scenery in the luxury and comfort of a bygone era.

The Bluebell line is known for its historic carriages, including two 1920s Pullman carriages and its enchanting stations, each restored in the style of a different period. Sheffield Park harks back to the 1880s, while the refreshment room at Horsted Keynes transports you to the 1920s, and Kingscote evokes rail travel in the 1950s…if you are a train enthusiast or just love beautiful countryside and bluebells then this nostalgic trip is for you…

The Bluebell Dancers…

Margaret Leibovici OBE (née Kelly; 24 June 1910 – 11 September 2004), known as Miss Bluebell, was an Irish dancer who was the founder of the Bluebell Girls dance troupe…I’m sure my grandfather and father knew more about the Bluebell Girls than I do…

The Girls first performed in 1948, debuting at the LIDO de Paris with a show called Confetti. Kelly, who was born in Dublin and, after being abandoned, raised in Liverpool, had already established herself as a top-class dancer by this time, making a name for herself in Paris and Berlin. The troupe’s catchy name arose from Kelly being affectionately called Miss Bluebell, given her striking hyacinth-coloured eyes.

A formidable and strong woman, who carefully carved out her career, Kelly had a clear vision. The Bluebell Girl would possess a graceful figure and a striking height, be trained in classical ballet, and have a wonderful personality.

Following her own retirement from dancing, Kelly continued to lead her Bluebells at the Lido for nearly 40 years in her role as Ballet Mistress. More than 10,000 Bluebell Girls had been guided by Kelly at the time of her death in 2004.

Wickers World..Who remembers that?…all the nostalgia is coming out in this post…This video is an inside look at the life of a  Bluebell Girl…

An enjoyable look at life back then for these dancers…

Who remembers singing “In and Out the Dusty(Dusky) Bluebells?…we used to dance and sing to this at our parties it was great fun…a lovely children’s Nursery Rhyme.

Blue Sea Squirts common name bluebell tunicate,

Clavelina moluccensis, common name bluebell tunicate, bluebell tunicate, or blue sea squirt is a species of tunicate (sea squirt), in the genus Clavelina (the “little bottles”). Like all ascidians, these sessile animals are filter feeders.

They do look a bit like bottles…The sea squirt diet consists of plankton and debris from dead sea life. Sea squirts possess both male and female reproductive organs. Larvae of the sea squirt are like tadpoles and swim freely. Sea squirts often attach to ships and move to new areas of the ocean…they sound like they clean up the ocean floor…now it gets a bit yucky and weird Their life cycle is rather intricate, and at one point during this metamorphosis, they’ll literally devour their own brains…they can also be eaten…Yep! Hoya or sea squirts, also known as sea pineapples, look and taste unique. It is an acquired taste when eaten raw with a strong ‘oceany’ flavour, but they may also be served grilled, deep-fried, dried, salted or smoked…

I have never cooked or eaten Bluebells but this recipe for Virginia Bluebells with Walnut Sauce sounds delicious…Please click the highlighted link for the recipe from the Forager Chef.

Please Note: English and Spanish bluebells (and presumably the hybrids) are poisonous.

The bulbs are easily mistaken for spring onions or garlic.

They contain chemicals called glycosides, which are toxic to humans, dogs, horses, and cows. All parts of the plant are toxic. Eating any part of the plant can trigger nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and a decrease in the heart rate.

I am assuming that like mushrooms it is important to check :

Music...many of the songs with reference to bluebells were nursery Rhymes or quite old songs not to my taste but I came across a couple …

Did you know?

The flowers of mountain bluebells are edible raw. The leaves are edible raw or cooked. The plant is galactogogue, and a tea of the plant was used by the Cheyenne Indians to increase the milk flow of nursing mothers.

Bluebell Hill, Kent…

Like many nations, the Brits have their reported sightings of “Ghosts”…The county of Kent has its fair share… Drivers were convinced they’d spotted the infamous Blue Bell Hill ghost on the A229 in February 2019…Quite feasible as Kent is home to some of the most spooky places in the UK – and the county is renowned for its ghost stories.

But perhaps most notoriously, Blue Bell Hill, the main road which runs between Maidstone and Medway, is one of Kent’s spookiest locations.

Ghosts have often been spotted on the road but hadn’t been for quite some time – more than 20 years ago in fact.

Now for another tune…

You are in beautiful bluebell woods…Can you dig up and replant bluebells?

Please do not dig them from wild areas as one of the biggest threats to wild bluebells is people digging them up for their gardens…Bluebells are also protected in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981,

However, if you have them in your garden or a kind friend or neighbour is gifting you some…You can plant single bulbs six inches deep and six inches apart. You can also transplant them “In the Green” meaning they are bearing leaves and flowers…

A nostalgic post today in many ways…I look forward to your comments..do you believe in ghosts? Have you travelled on the Bluebell Train…or watched the Bluebell Dancers? I look forward to your comments x