What is a Daisy Chain and How to make one
We’ve heard the term daisy chain but do we really know what it means? Is it a factory where delicious lemon frosted cakes are made? Sorry, that was the first thing which popped into my own head. In computer speak it is a network technology where a set of computers are connected in a straight line. The resulting connection is an improvement in a networks range and performance. You can also daisy chain rope in a similar fashion.
Here is what Merriam-Webster says:
daisy-chain 1 of 2 verb
ˈdā-zē-ˌchān
daisy-chained; daisy-chaining; daisy-chains
transitive verb
: to link (things, such as computer components) together in series
daisy chain 2 of 2 noun
1
: a string of daisies with stems linked to form a chain
2
: an interlinked series
a daisy chain of computer peripherals
a daisy chain of toddlers
But let’s go back to a time long before computers and learn who coined the word daisy chain.
Daisy Chain Literature
According to history, the person who coined daisy chain was Edward Bulwer-Lytton, the very same novelist and playwright who wrote the quote “The pen is mightier than the sword”, in his historical play Cardinal Richelieu. It was in his novel titled Night and Morning where Camilla uses the instance of “daisy chain”.
“Oh, no! not half so much! You see I never walk out in the fields,—[Now the Regent’s Park.]—nor make daisy-chains at Primrose Hill. I don’t know what mamma means,” added the child, in a whisper, “in saying we are better off here.”
In this instance Edward is referencing childhood days spent playing in the springtime fields, weaving daisy chains together, and showing not a care in the world. Daisies are also said to symbolize childbirth and fresh beginnings.
The name daisy is derived from ‘days eye’ because the flower would open in the morning and close at night. The Irish word for daisy is nóinín /noh-in-een/. And there’s a Celtic legend, that when a baby died, God would rain down daises over the land to console their loss.
Steps to making a Daisy Chain
- Pluck a daisy and place it in the hand you are most comfortable with.
- On your other hand hold out your thumb and using your thumbnail make an incision just below the flower pedals along the neck of the flower stem.
- Once you’ve created an incision all the way through, slide another fresh plucked daisy stem through that hole.
- You’ve now started the first link in your daisy chain!
Get creative and weave your daisy chain into a garland, bracelet, necklace or halo at your next outdoor bbq, raise a glass of tipple and take in that springtime sensation just as generations have before us.
We leave you with a beautiful little Irish short film from 2013 about a care free childhood growing up in Ireland where they also have a legacy of Fairy Trees. The film is narrated by living legend Fiona Shaw and it’s called The Daisy Chain.
