The holly bears a berry as red as any blood,
and Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ for to do us sinners good
The traditional English folk carol, The Holly and The Ivy, is often sung around Christmas, and holly, with its cheery red berries, has been gathered for centuries to bring colour into our winter homes. At Christmas time, my grandmother always placed sprigs of holly above the oval mirror that hung above her mantelpiece. That same mirror now hangs in my bathroom. Somehow, I never think of putting holly in there!
If I wanted to, however, there is no shortage of the stuff locally. Sir Titus Salt loved it and planted it all over his estates. His salesmen and buyers brought back specimens from all over the world and there are believed to be at least 26 different cultivars growing in Roberts Park alone. I found this bush along the canalside near the lock. The leaves of this one are much less spiky than some holly leaves.
You don't see as much holly around here as you used to. I hope you had a Merry Christmas, Jenny!
ReplyDeleteThe holy I used to see all had those serrated edges (maybe that's not the right term) but it was a bit dicey to pick and display. Usually I just stuck it in water someplace. I do love the color of the berries!
ReplyDeletePretty!
ReplyDeleteNice Depth
ReplyDeleteSounds like a lovely tradition, we only see these come out in Winter which is from June to August.
ReplyDelete