What?
Historically teasels were used to card wool. They are the dried flower heads of The Common Teasel.
Their hooks would help to raise the nap of the cloth making it fluffier and softer.
They were set in rows around large cylinders which revolved (Teasel Gigs) and the projecting teasel hooks carded the woollen cloth.
Gardens were once created to grow them en masse in order to meet the demands of the cloth makers.
Nowadays machinery with metal hooks has replaced them.
Well, nearly.
Some artisans use them in their bespoke work, preferring the traditional methods as well as their natural qualities. They are least likely to damage the finished cloth.
Makers of the fine baize snooker table cloth continue to use them too.
I find them structurally fascinating.
Where the leaves join the stem, little wells, that fill with rainwater, form.
In which small insects are drawn. Some to breed and some to succumb.
Look out for their spiny stems when handling them though.
We have five planted in front of our top bench. One is seven feet tall and has a dozen heads. Three are reaching six feet with six or so heads. The fifth is about four feet with three heads. They can grow to ten feet in height though.
The Common Teasel (Dipsacus fullonum)
This head is filling up with mauve coloured florets from either end, eventually meeting in the middle, whereas the one below is starting at the top. Others, that we have, start around their middle.
I stare up at them throughout the day from my lounge chair and expect them to walk off.
Anyone remember ‘The Day of the Triffids’, penned by John Wyndham?
I didn't know that about teasels. 'The Day of the Triffids' was a fascinating novel.
ReplyDeleteTrue and more ominous then methinks than nowadays
DeleteThey are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI think so, both with and without the flowers.
DeleteA teasel is not related to the thistle, as many wrongly think. And of course, a teasel is teasily recognised!😁
ReplyDelete🥴There are dad jokes but then there are grandma jokes.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to read about how teasels were used in the cloth industry in the past. They are very stately plants and wildlife of all sorts seem to love them.
ReplyDeleteYes, I remember that book from a long time ago!
I was impressed by the fact too, as well as the Victorian ingenuity in creating such machinery (gigs) to make best and efficient use of them. As for the book, it was a very long time ago for me too.
ReplyDelete