forgotten plant lore

[qthewetsprocket]

so i'm currently reading watership down, and i've noticed something that stood out to me a few weeks ago while reading savage sam by fred gipson: there's a heck of a lot of plant life casually mentioned in both books. and for the most part there's no description given...both authors just seem to take it for granted that everyone knows exactly what

Comments

[crossbow1]

What bugged me when I read it was that I didn't know what a stoat was.

[biichan]

It's a weasel-like animal. (Thank you, Redwall.)

[stoplookingup]

I like those plant names just for the sounds of the words, even if I don't know what the plants look like. But the best word ever is "hrududu."

[qthewetsprocket]

the words themselves are extremely yummy, yes. but they do a piss-poor job of helping me to form a mental picture of the lovely landscape that the author's trying to convey, and for that reason i find them very frustrating.

[kateorman]

Cow slips!

[qthewetsprocket]

...which, of course, has a very different meaning in cow pasture country. :)

[volitaire]

Oh I loved Watership Down, regardless of the casual mentions of flora. How are you liking it so far?

[qthewetsprocket]

liking it nicely so far. apart from fiver, hazel and bigwig i'm having a bit of trouble making out any distinct personalities of the other rabbits, but i'm not very far into it yet (i'm at the bit where they just crossed the river on the piece of wood after leaving the warren). so, yeah, there's time yet for them all to be a lot more developed.

[nsingman]

It isn't just you. There are many benefits to living in a society in which a large majority of the population doesn't have to be tied to farms. However, one downside is not having as much direct contact with agriculture, planting and even gardening (a luxury for many). Still, if the terms you encounter are ever unfamiliar, you know what to do.
:-)

[qthewetsprocket]

i blame the christians for burning all the witches. they knew themselves some plant lore, did those witches. :)

anyway, yeah, i know i rant all the time about the dumbing down of america, and that people shouldn't be afraid to open a damn book now and then. but i usually read in bed, far away from the internet or a book of common garden plants (if i had one). so yeah, it's a bit frustrating when i run across a whole paragraph full of unfamiliar plants and go, 'well, i had such a clear mental picture of this before...guess i'll just have to take the author's word on this one.'