The Strawberry Moon, a Cicada Summer, Kimchi, and the Longest Day
Hello folks. Happy late spring and summer solstice!
: )
Did you all enjoy The Great Coming of the Cicadas? I have to admit I miss the dull roar of their buzz in the background of our lives now that they are all nearly gone.
Did you all get the chance to witness the aurora borealis last month? Quite the magnificent sight, an especially delicate thing to follow such an intense storm as the one we had a few weeks ago. Nasa predicts there is a chance we will see them again in July 2025. I hope they are right.
As you may remember from the last newsletter, our roses were in bloom. Now, as they fade away, the daylilies have begun to bloom! Come see them while their beauty and sweet, subtle fragrance lasts. Pictured are a handful that we have available for purchase. Starting at $12 each.
We have a variety of these striking and unique daylily crosses—they make beautifully bizarre additions to any landscape or garden. We love daylilies both for their beauty and their brevity—you must appreciate them while they last. Suppose daylilies force us all to be in the moment! They are a great way to extend the flowering season as, again, their blooms emerge just as the roses fade.
They are easy to grow, low maintenance, and extremely difficult to kill. You will not have any trouble maintaining daylilies as they are quite the carefree and resilient plant with little requirements when it comes to tending to them. They thrive with or without you!
We have updated our list of available herbs here and we are excited for you all to see our new space for them (pictured below). Come by, browse, and check out the new area we have designated to herbs. All herbs are in 4” pots, $5 each.
In the process of moving pots of herbs from the old spot to the new, I encountered two different black widow spiders living underneath the growing trays (more on this later).
We have been captivated, lately, by the chicory in bloom! An after image of that electric periwinkle sticks in my brain each time we drive past swaths of chicory flowers in the roadside ditches. I love watching them open up in the morning and close back up by afternoon like they are tired after a long day of blooming and need to return inwards for rest (where my introverts at).
We have enjoyed many other late spring bloomers: First the honeysuckle, privet, milkweed, blackberry blooms (hence the blackberry winter), to name a few; now mullein, queen anne’s lace, butterfly weed, wild daylily, blanket flower, gray-headed coneflower, elderberry…
In other random news, I have been making a ridiculous amount of kimchi lately. I find food to be so healing, especially ancient recipes like kimchi. I feel awake and rejuvenated almost immediately after eating it. Eat some if you can—your guts will thank you. I am grateful to be surrounded by different international markets that carry most of the ingredients needed to make kimchi (Kim’s International Market is a great one). There is something about working out in the garden on a hot June day that makes me crave cold kimchi. I decided to make it in large batches as to last us all summer long. If anyone is interested in trying some we have plenty to spare.
How are everyone’s gardens growing? Anyone growing something for the first time?
Noticing any favorite native plants, weeds, or wildflowers in bloom?
What all have you harvested from your gardens so far? Anyone foraging medicinal plants or mushrooms this time of year?
Anybody trying out new culinary recipes, witchy potions, folk remedies, or other herbal concoctions lately?
You all please feel free to share with us photos, things you are harvesting, growing, creating, noticing, etc (to do with plants of course). We would love to hear from you and are always inspired to see what you all are doing with plants.
We greatly appreciate this (literally) growing community and the opportunity to swap plant tips, tidbits, lore, inspiration, ventures, etc. <3
some TIDBITS below:
FOLKLORE(ish)
SUMMER SOLSTICE
There is a “pagan custom that involves lighting and jumping over bonfires on Midsummer's Eve. Some say it keeps demons away and brings good luck to lovers. In Polish folklore, couples who jump through the flames together while holding hands will have their love last.” Stay safe tonight folks and have fun in the celebration and welcoming of summer.
THE STRAWBERRY MOON
This occurs tomorrow, June 21 at approximately 9:08 p.m., E.T. Kind of lovely the summer solstice coincides with the full moon. In North America we call it the “strawberry moon”; some cultures the “hot moon".” Also called “birth moon”, “egg laying moon” and “hatching moon” to highlight the beginning of new life.
Europeans call it the “rose moon” and sometimes, the “honey moon” as late June was often an ideal time to harvest honey (also the “mead moon”).
hon·ey·moon (n): Old English hony moone. Mid 16th century (originally denoting the period of time following a wedding): from honey + moon. The original reference was to affection waning like the moon. The French equivalent, lune de miel.
Quite the unromantic and medieval sentiment. (And often untrue! See: infatuation vs love).
COTTON BRITCHES WINTER
The final of the 6 little winters (occurring in late May-early June) is “when the linsey-woolsey (linen and wool) pants worn in cold weather were put away and farmers changed to the light cotton pants of summer.” Time to get out your cotton britches. : )
SCIENCE FACT(ish)
BLACK WIDOW SPIDER
Black widow spiders (Latrodectus mactans) are common in many parts of the United States but are rarely seen as they prefer “undisturbed, quiet, and dark areas, such as under rocks and debris, wood piles, and under or around houses.” Many black widows have the recognizable hourglass marking on their backs, though not all, and the males’ marking is not a bright red but usually yellow or orange. The purpose of this marking is to warn off predators and a study published in Behavioral Ecology “found that birds are three times less likely to grab or peck at a spider model with a red hourglass than one without.”
& now for THE NEWS:
FREE KITTENS
We still have 2 of the 5 kittens in need of good homes. They are such a good age right now! They are eating solid food and are very playful, sweet, and they love to cuddle. Spread the word if you know someone who may want one as we unfortunately are not able to keep them and are looking to give them to loving owners asap.
THE DAYLILIES ARE IN BLOOM
Starting at $12 ea.
Anytime between now and the next week or so would be an ideal time to set up an appointment if you wish to see them in their period of blooming.
UPDATED HERBS LIST
Available on the “herbs” page. It is not too late to plant! Send us your list and we will prepare your order for pickup. All herbs come in 4” liner pots and are $5 each.
HERBS OF THE WEEK*
DILL
LAVENDER
OREGANO
PATCHOULI**
PEPPERMINT
SAGE
*Above are herbs we have available in quantity—at least 30 plants available of each, approximately. If you all know of anyone potentially interested in purchasing herbs in quantity (i.e. local restaurants, grocery stores, plant shops) we would love to connect and would greatly appreciate you sharing with them our contact info.
**We have patchouli available in multiple sizes and various quantities. If interested in purchasing, please inquire for further details.
HOUSEPLANT OF THE WEEK
The lovely, the bizarre, the mezmerizing… Night Blooming Cereus!
I stayed up late one night to watch our Night Bloomers bloom—the greenhouse was crawling with gigantic, fragrant, pink and white blossoms. There were at least 20 blooming at one time. A personal favorite. Almost reminiscent of a creature found only in the depths of a dark sea…
Seems there is a bit of a theme with all of these rarities lately. Cicadas, the aurora borealis, the intersection of summer solstice and full moon, black widow spiders, and of course, the blooming of the rare beauty, Night Blooming Cereus. May we appreciate that which is occurring around us while it all lasts.
Thanks all and as always, happy growing.
mp & Tom
