Lavender is of course a staple of cottage gardening, and makes for a lovely scent, particularly next to paths where the occasional brushing up against it will release its scent. Behind that the Daylillies began blooming, a lightly night scented flower which puts off more blooms and is longer lasting than the Asiatic Lillies I […]
The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
I first read The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe in high school. I was lucky enough to attend a school which gave the option of studying the literature of Poe and Twain in more depth, and I jumped at the chance. My teacher, Gary Harrison loves both authors, but was particularly animated about Poe. […]
The right to bear arms, the right to regulate guns, both guaranteed by the second amendment – a guarantee of conflict
The reason the debate over gun control is all screwed up, is because if you look at the issue historically, both sides are right. The second amendment to the U.S. Constitution gives citizen the right to bear arms, especially in the case of forming militias, to both protect and if necessary, hold the government accountable. […]
Twilight in the moon garden: June 1, 2016
It’s day three of the unfolding of the first Brugmansia bloom. I first noticed the bud 11 days ago, and the flower popped out three days ago. Since then it’s been achingly slow unfolding. It teaches one patience. The Day Lillies have been blooming about a week now. I’ve read that they are night scented, […]
May 29 … Lamb’s Ear and Brugmansia about to pop in the witch’s garden
Lamb’s Ear is a seductive plant. It’s good for a moon garden as the furry leaves look almost silver in the daylight, and radiant at night. I had a few plants given to me a couple years back. It had taken over too much of her garden and she was tossing them out. I’ve kept […]
Pagan Holidays: Walpurgis Night and how a British lady went from Catholic saint, to Germanic goddess, to witch and gave us a second Halloween
“Walpurgis Night was when, according to the belief of millions of people, the devil was abroad—when the graves were opened and the dead came forth and walked. When all evil things of earth and air and water held revel.” Bram Stoker, “Dracula’s Guest” “There is a mountain very high and bare…whereon it is given out that […]
Brugmansia is welcomed to the witch’s garden with a witch’s brew of nasty weather
I was skeptical about trying a Brugmansia. They aren’t known for surviving in southern Illinois, and growing from seedlings or cuttings can take two or three years to pay off. But when I saw this monstrosity I decided to give it a go. I brought it into the witch’s garden and the weather turned foul. […]
The Witch’s Garden reborn: Taming the feral beast for a new spring
As spring sends new shoots bursting upwards, I’m struck with a sudden urge to rework the witch’s garden. A look at what survived the winter to act as a the base of a new beginning.
