5 Facts About Shamrocks You Might Not Know

St. Patrick’s Day is coming up and that means sifting through your closet for anything and everything that’s green so we don’t get pinched!  Of course the easiest solution is to just pin a shamrock on your lapel. It’s the one time of year we think about these tiny plants. But why shamrocks? We decided to dig a little deeper to find out what makes them so special we wear them on St. Patrick’s Day. Here are 5 facts about shamrocks you might not know.

In the Garden There are many types of clovers and they’re very common. If you’re a dedicated gardener and you find them in your flower bed, you’ll likely pull it as it’s widely considered a weed. However, some farmers keep them in their fields intentionally as they help with fertilization.

Clover Fields Shamrocks are young clovers. In fact, that’s where we get the word shamrock or seamair óg which means “young clover” in Gaelic.  Basically, clovers are shamrocks in March and later in the year, as they grow and reach the reproductive stage, they flower. Ireland is the perfect climate for clovers because they can’t handle hot summers or cold winters — they thrive in cool, wet weather.

Seedling Scarcity In 2010, a severe winter caused a shortage of shamrocks. To remedy the supply shortage for St. Patrick’s Day, plants similar to shamrocks were used instead. However, Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen made sure to deliver a real shamrock to President Obama.

The Saint & His Shrub St. Patrick was a 4th century Christian missionary. The shamrock has three leaves — St. Patrick used the shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity. It is now the most prominent symbol of St. Patrick’s Day as well as Ireland.

Flooded Flowers  On St. Patrick’s Day, you drown your shamrock for good luck. According to Irish Culture and Customs, this is only to be done with the last drink of the evening, perhaps after your big Irish feast: take the shamrock you’ve been wearing, put it the glass of whatever you’re drinking (perhaps Guinness or Irish whiskey), make a toast, drink your drink and throw the soggy shamrock over your shoulder.

Whether you’re decorating with green for St. Patrick’s Day or pastels for Easter, LTD Commodities has hundreds of products to make your holiday brighter.