There are numerous flowering harbingers of spring–the forsythia bushes at the end of my driveway, the crocuses springing up around my yard (either I was drunk-planting them or the squirrels had a bit of fun moving them around) and the daffodils about to shine their golden heads. The other sign of spring is the appearance around town of clumps and planters and borders full of pansies–yellow, purple, red, all happily showing their heart-shaped faces. If you haven’t invested yet in your pansies, it’s time.

What do you actually know about pansies? Did you know their name comes from the French “pensee” — to think or ponder. What are they thinking about really? They are thinking about you–pansies symbolize platonic love so make sure you get some for your friends and neighbors while you are getting some for yourself. If you are a brown thumb, know that pansies are some of the most forgiving plants around–give them a little sun now, a little partial shade in the summer, and they’ll stick around for a long time. They do not love soggy feet so give them a well-drained spot to live.

You can also eat pansy flowers if you like. I can’t bring myself to do it, but you can. For more about this beautiful happy flower, check out this site.

You can find pansies right now in many of the gardening stores locally–Mahoney’s, Russell’s, Stonegate Gardens, etc. My personal advice is to skip the big box store pansies and go local. You could also visit the Needham History Center’s Pansy Festival this Saturday, April 9–go early because they do sell out. Needham’s official flower is the pansy and they have a wonderful history site about this little flower’s roots in Needham. Does Weston have an official flower? Hmmm. Must ask Pam Fox.

Happy spring!