Kissing is in Season

I noticed another plant flowering at Roundball today. The gorse bushes in the meadow at the top of the wood and on the slopes of the hill are coming out in flower.  There is an old country saying that 'When gorse is in blossom, kissing's in season'. The good news is that Western Gorse flowers from January to June and also sporadically throughout the year.  Once associated with common lands, moorland and cliff tops, it has become more common beside motorways and roadside verges. It is also increasing other areas of land due to a fall in grazing. 

Gorse is a member of the Pea (fabaceae) Family. If you can avoid the spines and get in close you can see the similarity of its flowers with those of the sweet peas in your garden. Later in the year you will notice the gorse setting seed in pea like pods, and on warm summer days you will also notice that the flowers give off a wonderful cocoanut like aroma.

Also known in Devon as 'Fuzz' or 'Furze', gorse once played an important part in in rural life. In past times it was a valuable source of fuel. Giving out intense heat, gorse was used in bakers ovens, for firing bricks and tiles and also used in lime kilns. Another use was as fodder. In hard winters, where other forms of food were in short supply gorse was crushed or chopped and fed to horses and cattle.

Being a plant of of common land and rough open spaces, Richard Mabey, in his book 'Flora Britannica' describes gorse as an area where lovers can meet and lose themselves in its dense thickets. The bad news is that if you try this on Roundball Hill, half of Honiton will be able to see you.