Thistle Down Reel
Scottish Country Dance Instruction
THISTLE DOWN REEL (R4x32) 4C set Beryl McGhee Imperial 31- 8 1L and 4M dance ½ reels of 3 across with 2s/3s, 1L and 4M pick up partners in prom hold and complete reel
9-16 1s+4s lead down/up, set and dance RH across
17-24 1s and 4s lead out of ends and cast to 2nd/3rd place opposite sides, 1L+4L also 1M+4M turn RH
25-32 1s+4s set, dance ½ R&L and set. 2413
(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)
Keith Rose's Crib Diagram
Dance Information
Thistledown is the soft, white, feathery material that develops on thistles as their flower heads mature and produce seeds.Each small fruit is topped with a tuft of fine hairs, known as a pappus, which acts as a parachute when caught by the wind. The resulting fluffy seed heads are particularly conspicuous during late summer and autumn.
The spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare), a native Scottish species, produces purple flowers during the summer, followed by seed heads containing numerous small fruits. Although the feathery hairs assist wind dispersal, they frequently become detached from the fruits, leaving many seeds close to the parent plant. Other species, including the creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense), produce large quantities of thistledown that can be carried across fields and gardens by the wind.
Spear Thistle Down
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Additional search terms: Thistledown.
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