Celebrating the green
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- Published on Sunday, March 13, 2016
By Patricia Hanbidge
Saskatoon School of Horticulture Principal
Another year, and yes, another St. Paddy’s and all that goes along with that! March 17 marks a special day for those of us who are Irish — and those that would like to be! This day is celebrated by people from all backgrounds in many parts of the world. St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration of all that is green and people help to make the day special by wearing something green.
This day simply bursts with folklore surrounding leprechauns, good luck and of course, the shamrock. The Celts called the shamrock “seamrog” or “little clover” and considered it a sacred plant symbolizing the rebirth of spring. Now I think that for any of us who garden on the prairie, the shamrock is very special to us as it does signal the ebbing winter and the quickly approaching spring.
Identifying what plant is the original Irish shamrock has always been a bit of a puzzle. Many of the Irish still living in Ireland would say it is a four-leaved clover while others consider that it must be a three-leaved clover. No one can agree which plant was picked by St. Patrick; however, there are a number of possibilities of plants that are native to Europe and now naturalized to North America. It could be the European wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) which is often considered the true shamrock, or perhaps a type of white clover (Trifolium repens), hop clover (Trifolium procumbens) or even the familiar black medic (Medicago lupulina).
During the month of March we see a number of shamrock-looking plants gracing the shelves in our favourite garden centres and tempting us to purchase them for good luck. They are usually oxalis, which is native to Mexico in the higher elevation areas and southern Africa and South America. They grow from tiny bulbs and generally have three- or four-lobed leaves. In the landscape, some oxalis can become a problem ground cover.
Oxalis prefers to be in high light areas. The leaves will close at night and open in good light or sunshine. There are oxalis that will have leaves of red, green or purple with blooms of white, yellow, pink or red. Many of the oxalis we grow would go dormant in the summer if they were growing in their place of origin. If your oxalis is placed in an area that gets too hot, it will also go dormant until the temperature drops to an acceptable level. If you forget to water them, they might also go dormant but if you again begin to water, new sprouts will appear. If you find that your plant is not blooming, it may need a rest, so just cut back on the watering and fertilization and let it rest for a couple months. They are almost impossible to kill but they are susceptible to root rot so be careful not to over water them.
This time of year look for the following oxalis:O. regnelli (Lucky Plant) has three or four lobed, triangular-shaped leaves with Irish mist as a variegated version; O. triangularis (purple shamrock) is a beautiful plant with deep purple leaves and light purplish flowers; O. deppei (Iron Cross) has white flowers and also has three-lobed leaves but the centre of the green leaf is a deep purple.
Happy “Luck of the Irish” to you. May your shamrocks grow and may you find a pot of gold!
Hanbidge is a horticulturist with Saskatoon School of Horticulture (SSH) and can be reached at 306-931-GROW(4769) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Enrol now for distance courses leading to a diploma or a certificate; visit saskhort.com. Study in the comfort of your own home; SSH grads are recognized by the industry as superb additions to help their horticultural business grow.Like us on Facebook and follow us on twitter @horticulturepat.
