The Parsley Patch

We decided to give the David Austin rose, Anne Boleyn a try this year and thought she would be perfect for in a large pot. Nearby, the first delphinium of the season is blooming.

The blooms are varying shades of pink and very lovely with the most delightful fragrance. Very Tudor-ish and appropriately named!

Buff Beauty is a hybrid musk rose that is rambling along the front fence line. Its bloom was spectacular this year with lots of creamy yellowish blooms with delightful fragrance.

Quite a versatile rose, it can be grown as a shrub, trained to climb or left to ramble along a fence line. We’ve tried all three and finally have found that letting it ramble along a fence line is best as it does tend to want to be low to the ground and sprawl sideways.

This year I decided to take a literary journey through the elements by reading four books, one each that can be categorized by one of the elements: earth, air, fire and water. And so earth…

I chose Listening to Stone by Dan Snow to journey through earth. This book is written by a stone artisian, or waller, with a gift for poetic and mystical prose. I was drawn to it sitting on the book shelf and thought it seemed a fitting choice to gain a better understanding of working with stone in both a physical and spiritual way.

My first real experience working with stone was while building the medicine wheel garden. While placing each and every stone I could gain a sense of its energy and individual presence in the circle. A couple of years earlier I began a stone pile for an at-the-time unidentified purpose. Many stones had been dug up while planting new trees and I was perplexed as to what to do with them. As I pondered, they seemed to have a voice that said, “Just put us on the other side of the house, please.”

Yes, stones talk do me and I talk to them. Don’t you? Although stones don’t have souls as humans do, they do have a distinctive spirit and energy that is unquestionable. At the time the side yard was an unkempt catch-all for garden equipment with a mock orange and a few old peonies that sill bloomed in spring. The space was to later become the site I was drawn to to build the medicine wheel garden.

While this book is not only elegant in verse, it is in design as well. It is definitely suited more towards someone who has an interest in working with stone. Listening to Stone is definitely a good choice for the dedicated stone crafter or those with an interest in building walls and other dry-stacked structures. While it isn’t a how-to, its appeal and magic will be lost on those who don’t have a passing interest in stone. What really impressed me about the book was its presentation. It is one of the most beautifully bound books with heavy weight pages and pleasing typography I have seen in a long time.

Roses are an obsession. You can’t have just one. The more you have, the more you want. It is a vicious cycle. I refuse to use chemicals and so only treat the roses organically. That means dealing with some black spot and munching here and there, but the rewards of gorgeous, deliciously scented blooms is worth it.

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The variety of lavender we grow is Lavandin Lavandula x intermedia ‘Grosso,’ a French cultivar that has proven for us to be hardier than the more common English varieties. All English varieties such as ‘Munstead’ and ‘Hidecot’ have failed. ‘Grosso’ is larger and considerably more fragrant and is the primary type used for commercial lavender production.

Full sun and good drainage are essential for lavender to thrive. The lighter and more alkaline the soil, the better. Once established it will require very little watering and fertilizing. You will need a good pair of sharp pruners as pruning and timing or it are vital to good flower production. In bloom, it will produce a 3+ foot mound.

Location
– site in eight hours or more of direct sunlight
– area should be dry where water does not regularly pool with good to sharp drainage
– a spot with the least amount of winter wind is ideal
– allow two feet around and above the current size of the bush for flower wand growth

Process
– dig a hole at least 12″ wide and deep; though 18″ would be better if soil is heavy clay
– mix the excavated soil with an equal portion of a purchased sandy topsoil (be sure the top soil is loose and sandy)
– refill the hole slightly so that the plant can be positioned the same depth it was previously growing
– set the plant in the hole and water in with half-strength Miracle-Gro
– backfill and tamp
– water (not with Miracle-Gro solution) to set the soil

Mulch
Lavender does not like to be mulched because it doesn’t want to be moist. However, you will want to use a light-colored gravel or crushed stone in lieu of mulch. The idea is to reflect light up into the plant to keep it from getting woody.

Fall Care
Keep air circulation flowing around the plant by ensuring hat dead leaves and debris are continually removed from the base of the plant.

Winter Care
It is vital to ensure that dead leaves and debris are continually removed from the base of the plant and that airflow remains unrestricted, otherwise the woody stems and crown may rot. However, snow cover is ideal as it will insulate and protect from drying wind and winter sun scorch. Through winter the lavender will maintain its foliage, but as spring approaches it will begin to wane and may even look dead.

Spring Care
On or about April 1 you will want to do your spring pruning. I did a severe late-summer pruning to rejuvenate this plant so it may not need a spring this time around. When doing the spring pruning in general you want to remove 2/3 of the green/gray soft growth. Don’t cut back into the wood as new growth is difficult to get started there. The idea is to keep the woody core of the plant to a minimum by forcing new growth to begin as far back into the plant as possible. As you pruning, keep to a mound shape. Lavender will continue to look bedraggled until the weather warms. A light watering of Miracle-Gro Flower booster after pruning will help.

Summer Care
Flower wands will begin to show in late May and will be in bloom by late June, lasting until the beginning of August. No care is needed except to water sparingly the first year.

Drying: the best time to harvest for drying is when a 1/3 of the bloom is open, usually around the first or second week in July. This will give you premium-quality lavender for dried flower arranging when you need the stem intact. Cut the stems where they emerge from the foliage. Bunch the stems together, keeping stem bunch about 1″ or less in diameter. Fasten with a rubber band and hang upside down in a cool dry place for several weeks. You may get a small rebloom later in the season, but doesn’t always happen.

Summer pruning: when the flowers have faded (dried on the plant) around the first week in August, cut off all stems where they emerge from the foliage. These stems can also be bunched and dried and used to make sachets or cast in a fire for a fragrant delight. As with spring pruning, cut back 2/3 of the new growth that occurred during the summer.

This is the first year that our oak leaf hydrangeas have bloomed and they were magnificent. Lining the stairs up to the driveway, whey are under planted with hostas.

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As the Winter Solstice occurs, the Celtic festival of Yule begins. As the sun passes a halfway mark in the celestial heavens, it is essentially being reborn into a new cycle of life, growing brighter and stronger every day until the Summer Solstice. Bonfires would be lit and a giant Yule log wassailed and set a light in hopes the sun would be reignited to rise higher and brighter in the sky, banishing the cold Winter.

This “rebirth” of the sun, the rebirth of the god of the goddess and the birth of the Child of Light (or Promise) are common themes shared by many different peoples. Many customs and observances that we now see as Yule, Winter Solstice and Christmas have roots predating Christianity, making this one of the most ancient and important festivals. This was a turning point in the midst of the bleak midwinter when ancient Celts would bring evergreens into their homes as living symbols of the promise of Spring. To the ancients, bringing in plants that live when all else appears dead and kindling of a large fire were necessary rituals in the endless cycle of the year to spark life back into the land.

With the advent of Christianity, the outward focus shifted from the rebirth of sun and land to the birth of the Son of God who was to bring new life and eternal light. As the underlying theme from the more ancient pagan celebrations remained intact, it was only fitting that the church added the celebration of the birth of Jesus to the already existing customs occurring in late December. While the birth of a god at winter was common in many traditions, much of modern secular Christmastime revelry comes from the pagan Roman celebration of Saturnalia. This festival celebration of the god Saturn was rife with markets of fine wares, gift giving, elaborate feasting, partying and the spreading of goodwill and merrymaking.

ASSOCIATIONS
· Animals: reindeer, stag, wren, phoenix
· Colors: gold, white, green, red
· Element: earth
· Food: mulled wine and apple cider, cookies, gingerbread, pears, nuts, turkey, beef, pork
· Plants: bayberry, pine, rosemary, cedar, mistletoe, holly, poinsettia
· Power: renewal, rebirth, transformation

DECORATIONS
· Evergreen boughs, garlands and wreaths
· Poinsettias, paperwhites and amaryllis
· Evergreen trees decorated with sun images or natural ornaments
· Images or wintertime, snowmen, etc.
· Candles

ACTIVITIES
· Decorate the house with evergreens and dried items from the garden
· Make a wreath using dried sunflower heads and berries and place outside for birds
· Ring a bell at the exact time of the Solstice to welcome the returning sun
· Cast sunflower seeds into the yard to feed the birds
· On the Winter Solstice create a circle of candles, one for each family member and have each in turn light their candle thinking of a Yule wish; if you are solitary, light a candle for each with a blessing for their good health and fortune

YULE INCENSE
1 part sandalwood – protection, healing, spirituality
2 parts frankincense – protection, spirituality
2 part myrrh – protection, healing, spirituality, purification
2 parts pine needles – purifying and cleansing, protection, healing, money
2 parts cedar – purifying, protection, healing, money
2 parts juniper – protection, psychic powers, health, love
1 part cinnamon – success, healing, psychic powers.
1 part ginger – money, success, power, love,
3 drops orange oil – a solar scent, purification, love

This year there were some firsts in the garden, namely the intense blue of the hydrangeas and the first bloom of the four-year-old oakleaf hydrangeas. Some things are starting to get overgrown and will need to be thinned next year.

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The Celtic festival of Samhain is one of the oldest and most important. It marks the end of one year and the beginning of the new. As the final of three harvest festivals, it is also the start of the winter season. During this special time of transition the veil between worlds is thinnest and the ancestors are able to return to visit their loved ones. So strongly rooted in the old world was this festival that the church could not abolish its observance, but instead incorporated it into Christian doctrine as All Hallow’s Eve, a time to honor the dead. The ancient rites of Samhain and All Hallow’s Eve gave birth to many of the customs associated with Halloween and All Saints/All Souls Day. Aside from Christmas, Halloween is the most commercialized and celebrated holiday the world over. Read more about the history of Halloween.

While it was a time for honoring the dead, people would also carve out turnips and place candles within to light the darkness and dress in scary animal skins to trick any evil spirit that may be afoot into thinking they were one of them. Children would go from house to house begging for scraps of food that would be left for the ancestors, the land would be put to bed and animals brought in for the long winter that lay ahead. Divination was also particular accurate during this power time and Druids would use their seership to divine the fate of the tribe for the winter months.

In the garden, do your final cleanup and plant some bulbs for within their dark recesses they hold the promise of a spring that is to once again be reborn when the wheel turns and the infinite cycle begins again. Perhaps you may want to also build a small altar with photos and tokens of remembrance for your loved ones who have passed on – maybe even hold a dinner party in their honor. Be sure to set extra places for them so they know they are loved and welcomed.

ASSOCIATIONS
· Animals: bats, cats, dogs
· Colors: black, orange, gold, brown
· Element: water
· Food: apples, corn, nuts, cider, pumpkin, pomegranate, cranberry muffins
· Plants: apple, oak, pumpkin, sage, broom
· Power: divination, remembrance, magic, knowledge

DECORATIONS
· Oak leaves, acorns
· Carved pumpkins and gourds
· Pictures of your ancestors

ACTIVITIES
· Plant bulbs for spring bloom
· Set up photos and remembrances of loved ones who have past on
· Have a dinner party to remember your ancestors, serve soup to warm the October chill
· Divine the future with Tarot, I Ching or Ogahm divination sets

SAMHAIN INCENSE
2 granules frankincense – protection, spirituality
2 parts chrysanthemum petal – protection from malevolent forces
2 parts cedar – protection, purification, healing, money
1 part myrrh – protection, healing, spirituality, purifies and creates peaceful space
1 part lavender – purification, happiness, love, peace, harmony, healing
1 part sandalwood – protection, healing, spirituality
1 part cinnamon – success, healing, psychic powers
1/2 part clove – prosperity, drawing of money, protection, purification
1 sprig rosemary – purifying, cleansing, protection, healing, mental power, knowledge
3 white sage leaves – Immortality, longevity, wisdom, protection, wishes
3 drops orange oil – love, luck, divination

To us summer is just beginning, but to the ancient Celts who saw the year as divided solely between summer and winter, we have reached the mid-point of summer and so celebrate Midsummer. It falls on the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. The sun now high over head is at the height of its power. For several days it may appear to stand still, but shortly begins waning as the days begin to grow shorter.

Bonfires were lit on hilltops and joyous celebration abounded at this time to honor solar gods such as Apollo, Dagda and Ra. The early church attempted to shift focus from pagan tradition by adopting the festival to celebrate St. John, who himself is often seen as a man of nature. St. John’s Wort, a popular herb often called nature’s Prozac, was traditionally harvested at this time of year. In Celtic circles The Oak King and Holly King were seen as deities who each ruled one half of the year: The Oak King from Winter Solstice to Summer Solstice and The Holly King from Summer Solstice to Winter Solstice.

But the goddess is not forgotten at this festival as she is everywhere: in the wind blowing through the trees, the fragrant flowers blooming and the many crops that are ready for their first harvesting. This is a particularly powerful time to harvest and dry herbs for use in cooking, crafting, magical workings and healing.

Midsummer joins Beltane and Samhain as being one of the three most magical nights of the year. It’s said that if peering through a ring of rowan twigs on Midsummer Eve you’ll see the fairies dance and sing.

ASSOCIATIONS
· Animals: horses, cattle, robins, wrens
· Colors: yellow, gold, white
· Element: fire
· Food: homegrown vegetables, fruits and herbs, citrusy things
· Plants: chamomile, lavender, St. John’s Wort, roses, vervain, yarrow
· Power: abundance, affirmation, strength, power
· Symbols: cauldron, fairies, flowers, sun wheels, swords

DECORATIONS
· Bundles and bunches of herbs
· Wreaths laden with summer flowers
· Baskets of potpourri
· Images of the sun

ACTIVITIES
· Collect herbs for bunching and drying
· Make a wreath for your front door using your favorite dried flowers
· Make potpourri
· Have a garden tea and serve herbal teas, lemonade, savory cheese spreads made from fresh herbs, rose geranium pound cake and shortbread cookies shaped like the sun
· Sit in a quiet, secluded spot in nature and meditate on the sun and feel yourself filled with its nourishing light

MIDSUMMER INCENSE
(burn on incense charcoal or cast into the fire)
2 parts sandalwood – protection, healing, spirituality
2 parts benzoin – purification, prosperity, stabilizing
2 parts bay – protection, psychic power, healing, purification, strength
1 part dragon’s blood -“ love, protection, exorcism, potency
1 part lavender- peace, harmony, healing
1 part chamomile – money, sleep, purification.
3 drops oak moss oil – drawing of money

LEARN MORE
· Midsummer: Magical Celebrations of the Summer Solstice
· The Summer Solstice: Celebrating the Journey of the Sun from May Day to Harvest
· Summer Solstice, The