Have a cup’a Queen Anne’s Lace, Daucus carota.
As the Queen Anne’s Lace flower ages and seeds develop the umbel curls up, creating a lovely cup, as I’ve caught in this image.
Queen Anne’s Lace is not native to our continent, but to Europe and southwest Asia. It is said to have some beneficial use in the garden, boosting tomato production and providing a cooler and moister environment for lettuce if the gardener plants QAL around the tomato or lettuce.
On the other side of the coin, QAL is thought to be a significant menace in pastures, where it remains viable in the soil seed bank for up to five years. For us humans, it can cause skin irritation and blisters and in some states it is considered a noxious weed.
I Prefer native plants in my gardens and surrounding woods, but Queen Anne’s Lace has cast a magic spell upon me. I enjoy having it around.