Alice in Wonderland by Patricia Wellingham-Jones
1
In a sun-filled glade in the wormwood
fleabane torments wolfbane
who howls threats with his painted tongue
at the leopard’s bane chewing on blood flowers
Under skunk cabbage possum grapes play dead
Porcupine grass lays down its quills
Spider lily spins snail vines
ties Canary Island broom
to sweep the place clean
Gopher plant and mole plant
lay out the lawn design
pattern the dance floor in lambs quarters
Fairy wands and fairy dusters
loop moth orchids on the dove trees
Drape the clearing with white baby’s breath
2
Alice sets the table with flamingo celery
harts’ tongue fern and pork and beans
Elephant’s food and liverleaf
fill separate blue bowls
Toadflax squats by the pond
where goldfish plant and pickerel weed swoop
Swan river daisy teases a sea urchin
Crab cactus and shrimp plant and lobster-claw
hope they won’t be canapés
3
Cockscombs his woolly blue curls
ties them into a pony tail palm
Apes’ earrings dangle under huge elephant ears
Gayfeather tickles goat’s beard
Cowslips into her Chinese woolflower gown
Wake-robin tunes up his voice
Kingfisher daisy rattles percussion
while harebell chimes from a shadblow
Lambs ears and bunny ears perk
deer tongue fern says the dance shall begin
The freckle face panda plant stirs its bones
Firetail blazing colts foot thunders up
Coyote brushes against beefwood
thinks of a snack
4
Out of sight in the golden fleece
the false dragonhead lifts his parrot’s beak
Horehound skulks and spies with Virginia creeper
The rattlesnake master guards his serpent’s tongue
Venus flytrap licks her fleshy lips and waits
The devil’s walking stick keeps them company
Tiger flower prowls and lion’s tail twitches
Baboon flower patrols the treetops
Yellow-eyed grass watches for trouble below
Bull bay and dog-tooth violet and buffalo berry
keep their red shanks ready
Emu bush buries her head in the sand
The Cheshire Cat grins and observes
from deep in the butterfly bush
5
Blissfully unaware
Alice and naked ladies dance
Their little birds’ feet skip through the old tunes
In tiny sweet tones they sing chickabiddy
while their five-finger ferns pin foxgloves
to the donkey’s tail
Flame bush bursts into a red-hot reel
Hummingbird flower deigns
to dance the turkey-foot
Even touch-me-not grabs
the cardinal climber and swings
Spurned dandelion takes his bleeding heart
to fawn lily for comfort
Under the pussy willow Miss Willmott’s ghost
cuddles a teddybear cactus
Wallflowers watch the dance from the sidelines
with hens and chicks and poor pigweed
Standing alone Queens tears drip
from the ladies’ sagging wattles
7
Monstera lights fairy lanterns
Bells-of-Ireland call birds of paradise
in a fireworks display so grand
it bends the devil’s backbone
for the grand finale of Alice’s garden party
*plant names from Sunset Western Garden Book
