THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Widow’s Tears

Lisa Karen Miller

          Today’s column is dedicated to all those who taught us to give – the Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, and the ordinary people in our lives who taught by example.

          And especially that widow, who gave her last mite.

          John Tradescant the Elder and his son were royal gardeners to King Charles I. The Elder’s official title was Keeper of His Majesty’s Gardens, Vines, and Silkworms. He traveled widely, and on each excursion he collected items of natural history and ethnography.  He kept them in a large house called The Ark.

          The Ark became the first museum open to the public in England.

          The pair made many botanical discoveries, one of which was Widow’s Tears, or Spiderwort.  It was brought back from Virginia. The genus of flowering plants to which it belongs was named Tradescantia in their honor.

Its three symmetrical petals, which can vary in hue from pale pink to purple to periwinkle blue, are magnets for bees and other pollinators.  Also called Dayflower, its blossoms open in the morning and fade by day’s end. 

          The plant has many other common names: Trinity Flower, because of its three petals; Job’s Tears; Moses in the Bulrushes; Spider Lily; Cow Slobbers (yuck) because its stems contain a thick, mucus-like sap; and Blue Jacket.

          It is also called Spiderwort because its foliage resembles spider legs. Following the Doctrine of Signatures, people thought it could cure spider bites. Wort is an archaic word that means a plant used for food or medicine. Spiderwort has been used as both for centuries.

          Cherokee ate its young leaves as salad greens.  They could also be boiled or baked. Mashed, they relieved the pain of insect bites. A tea relieved the tummyache of overeating.

          If you squeeze the bract, a tear-like liquid oozes out. They also wilt into a fluid jelly, which reminds some people of the tears of a grieving widow – or one who wants to appear so. In the language of flowers, it says grief.

          The flowers look most impressive on a rainy or cloudy day – a gray backdrop makes the color pop.

          Particularly sensitive to pollutants and radiation, it is now being used commercially in California to detect excess levels of pesticides, herbicides, auto exhaust, and sulfur dioxide.

          For this beautiful flower, we owe a debt of thanks to a pair of travelling gardeners with a passion for collecting.

© Copyright 2023 Lisa Karen Miller