The word, “keel,” comes from the Old Norse word for “ship.” As it was Rosendahl’s only gloss on a term beginning with the letter K, it served as the inspiration for today’s poem.

In botany, a “keel” refers to the fused, boat-shaped structure formed by the two bottom petals in flowers, especially of the Papilionaceous branch of the Fabaceae family–legumes like peas and beans and lupines. One also sees this in some orchids including dendrobium and black orchids, plants which live in Minnesota houses but not in Minnesota gardens.

The descriptions in “Fairy Boats” and some of the images in this post come from photo safari visits to my friend, Judy. She lives outside of Northfield on many acres that manage to contain several habitats: lawns, hedgerows, gardens, prairie, ponds, and dense woodlands. The stand of lupine described in the poem was not planted by her but inadvertently by passing birds. (Visits to Judy’s land has sparked several other poems over the years and more than 1,000 photographs.)

Lupines also flourish along Minnesota’s North Shore, and thrive abundantly in the ditches near the rocky beaches of Lake Superior. The images below come from that region.

Wishing you an imaginative day, wherever you journey! LESLIE