Florida Native Plant Society posted this on Facebook and I found it really interesting. I always loved mythology.
"Symbols of fertility, Mother Earth and her Titan daughter Tethys produced a race of female divinities known as nymphs…The nymphs were young, beautiful and occupied and protected their own realms here on Earth.
One particular nymph, Smilax, was loved by a mortal lad, Crocus. But Smilax could not make a decision to accept Crocus…Her indecision irritated the Gods, who decided to turn Crocus and Smilax into two plants that had such different habits that they never saw each other again.
Crocus provides us with saffron, the herb derived from the three part stigmas of the flower, and some species of Smilax provide the main ingredient of the drink Sarsaparilla, derived from the roots.
We have several species of Smilax here in Florida, none of which are used to produce the drink Sarsaparilla, but were used by the Indians to produce a flour substitute. Crocus are native to areas throughout the Mediterranean, as well as western China.
I guess the moral to this story would be something like: “If you can’t make up your mind, that lack of decision making could end up being a thorny proposition…Have a great day, and may Crocus make all your rice yellow…"
