About Plant Badges

**Sir Didymous** · 22nd June 15, 12:37 PM

A little while back some friends invited my wife and I to help start a stempunk group. The idea that they had was for the guys to be of a fictitious military unit. The idea was thrown out there for it to be a Highland regiment. To avoid stepping on the honor and dignity of any actual units or it's members, we have opted to model our kits more on the 79th New Yorkers' original uniforms. One of the ideas that came up and was agreed on was that since most of us have some clan affiliation or another, that we should wear our plant badges with our clan specific cap badges at events. I know the clan Ferguson's plant badge and the others know theirs, but we have one poor guy whose roots are nearly all German or Polish. He was in for the kilts and uses a plain thistle clan-style cap badge, but now he's stuck trying to decide what to wear for a plant badge. One suggested using a piece of thistle, but aside from the impracticality of using a real one, he also doesn't like the idea of a thistle behind a thistle. he said it was "just too generic." I'm sure the clan Stewart may disagree.

I thought that since plant badges originated by people using local plants as identifiers that he should consider using edelweiss, given his German heritage. But he asked me to ask the rabble, well more directly quoted "the guys on that site you belong to..."

So, any thoughts that could help him out?

**IsaacW** · 22nd June 15, 01:09 PM

Being fictituous and all... he could do most anything he wanted or that was easily available. I do like the Edelweiss idea. Maybe check this out... http://www.gentlemansgazette.com/sho...fort-belvedere

**Tarheel** · 22nd June 15, 01:17 PM

I also agree that Edelweiss would be the best to represent German heritage.
Troops from the Bavarian states collected the flowers during part of their mountain training and wore them as a badge of honor. I treasure mine for that reason (earned in 1977). "All the Way, everyday".

**AFS1970** · 23rd June 15, 09:01 AM

Germany also has a tradition of plant badges of a sort. I vaguely remember that they wear flower or sprigs of something in their hats, based on local or regional plants. So perhaps he could find something that would reflect his specific heritage.

**The Q** · 23rd June 15, 09:24 AM

A little larger would be the Polish national plant the corn poppy.

**James Hood** · 25th June 15, 06:34 PM

For sure, WW II German Gebirgsjaeger (Mountain / ski troops, literally, "mountain hunters") wore the Edelweiss.

As you are "emulating" a ficticious Highland (Scottish "mountains") unit, another vote here for the Edelweiss.

**AFS1970** · 27th June 15, 11:00 AM

Perhaps THIS could be your unit's theme song.

**Tarheel** · 27th June 15, 03:02 PM

Originally Posted by AFS1970

Perhaps THIS could be your unit's theme song.

Agreed. With pipes, drum and fife the marching (accordion) theme could be refined.

**Pipersson** · 28th June 15, 06:09 AM

The thought Edelsweiss could be german heritage plant badge shows how Germany is noticed in the United States (Oktoberfest and Alt Heidelberg).
But let me tell you Bavaria is just a small southern part of Germany (and the bavarians don't want to be germans in the firts line but bavarians...) and Edelweiss does not grow in the most parts of Germany even just in small parts of Bavaria.
AND the plant is severely protected being so rare.
As a german from Hamburg which is in the north I never saw a real Edelweiss growing in nature and I wouldn't feel represented by it at all.
There are many typical plants in the different areas of Germany and Edelweiss is much more typical for Austria or Switzerland.
As a matter of fact the oak is considered to be the typical german plant and..I would guess also plant badge.

Tom

**IsaacW** · 28th June 15, 06:25 AM

Excellent points, Tom.

Originally Posted by Pipersson

The thought Edelsweiss could be german heritage plant badge shows how Germany is noticed in the United States (Oktoberfest and Alt Heidelberg).

Speaking from Wisconsin, many of the people here and in Minnesota of "German" descent are from the area of Bavaria and these are the traditions that followed (and what people selectively remember). Most "German" descent Wisconsinites and Minnesotans came over around the joining of Bavaria with the German Federation (1871 and after). For many, this was a choice because they were Catholic and did not like the joining into a more protestant, Prussian-led, "Germany." Anyway, that is what I have always been told here, in this small part of the U.S.

Isaac, lover of history and immigrant history