A couple a days ago I posted a shot of my azalea…

today it burst into flower, and the bright red petal thingies have turned pink!

Now for some fun facts about azaleas, well Ok, ONE fun fact!

Azaleas are really toxic! The leaves and nectar contain something called andromedatoxins, which sends you doolally. In some parts of Turkey they deliberately feed bees on it (how da fook anyone makes a bee do anything deliberately is beyond me, I can’t even get one to find it’s way out of my conservatory when it gets in there, no matter how much I shout at it) anyway I digress. The bonkers Turks feed the bees on the azaleas, and the bees then produce a mind-altering, potentially medicinal, and occasionally lethal honey known as “mad honey”. According to the ancient Roman historian Pliny the Elder in his Natural History, an army invading a place in Turkey called Pontus, was poisoned with such honey, resulting in their defeat. I suppose it’s cheaper than AK47’s and the like.

Seriously Turkey people, smoke a J instead, let the bees be! 🐝