Butterfly Ranunculus

Funny, the things one discovers while doing a spot of research (read: Googlin’) for the latest Flower Of The Week. Turns out, for example, that the Butterfly Ranunculus is not only the name of a particularly beautiful type of ranunculus, but also the name of a pro-level paddle for table tennis aficionados. Okay, you think, maybe delve a little deeper, see if there’s any nice analogies that can be made between this slab of aerodynamic wood and the springtime wildflower I’m supposed to be writing about. “A modern defender with tspcurl p1r…“ okay maybe not. Turns out the type of people who review table tennis equipment online aren’t blessed with the most florally poetic of words.

The truth is, the Butterfly Ranunculus is one of those transcendent blooms that doesn’t need much talking up. Regular ranunculus are already head and shoulders above many of their peers when it comes to colourful, complex-petalled flowers - the butterfly variation takes things to the max by featuring multiple flowers on each single stem. What’s more, each petal features a tiny layer of wax that gives them the sparkle of fluttering butterfly wings as well as a longer shelf life. ‘The sparkle of fluttering butterfly wings’ - you would think those table tennis websites could at least stretch to that pre-teen level of poetry, no?