Ox-eye daisy (Leucanthemum Vulgare)

In Margaret Baker's book "Discovering the Folklore of Plants" she writes:

"The ox-eye daisy is sacred to St John and an essential part of the Midsummer floral decorations. It is lucky to step on the first flower of the year but it should never be uprooted or the children of the household will grow up stunted. This could affect puppies and other young animals allowed to eat the flower and a nursling child, who touched one, would also be adversely affected. A girl should pick a bunch of daisies with her eyes shut and the number of flowers found in the bunch will be the number of years till she marries."

I always enjoy these daisies since they grow everywhere on the farm and in the garden. Needless to say they have been pulled up in the garden with no ill effect!

T and N have been mending fences and putting up electric ones so we can move the suckler cows and their young hopefully this evening along a track bordering a corn field into a new pasture. Beware of a stampede! T then baled and wrapped the grass to make haylage - this is a cross between hay and silage! He has had to buy some tape and a few crow scarers as they have a habit of pecking through the plastic and then the bale turns mouldy.