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Welcome to my herb farm
via the internet! (It's the next best thing to visiting in
person.)
I would like to begin my
newsletter by thanking Julie Ferguson for putting me on the web, and
developing such a great website! Her professional touch is
everywhere on this site, she made it easy for me, and I am in awe of
her cultivating techniques. Thanks Julie!
The herbal news for June is all about Fairy Gardening! We are
offering classes on learning all about attracting the mystical,
magical flower fairies to your garden. To find out what I am
talking about, read on. . . .
I have never ACTUALLY
seen one in my garden, but I KNOW they are there!
You may have them in
your garden too. Have you ever put the spade you are using
down, turned around, and it's gone? Then you find it down the
row a ways, nowhere near where you left it! Plants move too,
they grow up in the spring several feet away from where you planted
them the previous year. Sometimes you know there is a presence
with you in the garden. From the corner of your eye, you see a
branch move, or some foliage rustle - and there is no wind.
When you turn your head, you see nothing! Well I can tell you
what causes these unexplained garden experiences! There are
fairies living in my garden. They are there, under the plants,
sleeping in the rosemary flowers, putting their babies in tulip
cradles, and dancing around thyme plants at night. They don't
like to be called fairies though, and the old spelling is faerie.)
They prefer to be called Wee Folk or Good Neighbors or People of
Peace. These folk view humans as noisy, smelly and destructive
people, with little regard for nature, and no manners at all.
Fairies are generally neat and tidy. They work hard and are
thrifty. They prefer to do kind deeds with no reward or
acknowledgement. If they see these values in a human, it is
possible for a friendship to develop. In that case, you will
find tasks being done for you. But they do have a sense of
humor and a mischievous side, which makes things disappear and
reappear in the garden!
Certain plants are known
to attract fairies and should be planted if you would like to
attract fairies to your garden. Did you know that the favorite
food of fairies is the strawberry? Foxglove flowers are also
called "little folks gloves?" Smaller fairies wear them on
their heads as hats. Fairies love to hide out in daffodil
flowers. Legend has it that a daffodil worn next to the heart
assures good luck. Violas draw love; Shakespeare mentions the
use of them in a love potion in "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
Violas, commonly called heartsease, also draw fairy folk. To
see fairies, you can brew a tea from wild thyme and the grasses from
a fairy queen's throne. Fairies are most likely to be
seen on a midsummer's eve--a night of high mischief and magic.
To prepare for
Midsummer's Eve, Salt Box Gallery is offering special workshops.
These are listed under the Summer Herbal Workshop section of the
website and are held on Tuesday evenings from 7-9 PM.
Hope to see you at Salt Box Gallery!
Let me know how you like the website, drop me an
e-mail entitled "Regarding
website."
Herbally yours,
Marian |
