ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the National Council of Churches.
A few years back, we passed out these Clethra shrub flowers at the oncology clinic: the staff enjoyed the fragrance.
Blocking the biggest window seemed to be a mistake, so I slid the coffee table to an empty space where the hide-a-bed served no purpose. Charlie Sue immediately jumped up onto to the e-z chair (and me) to begin studying the birds.
Slight changes in the garden are remarkable. The birds, squirrels, and butterflies paid very little attention to one another - or us. A young rabbit wandered casually by the Clethra bush and came back home. All it took was the safe haven for us and a couple of bird feeding stations for anything that moved.
Charlie Sue's PARK aimed at selling plants, but that did not work for them. I read about Clethra and learned how interesting it is - sending out Cinnabon aromas. The original bush is so robust now that it hosts a number of birds, hummingbirds, and insects. Clethra also sprouts ways to multiple the original plant, dividing them in the fall. I will have five of them in the rose garden, since no contraption can equal the attraction of God's Creation inviting places to rest, feed, and mate.
I worked on this project for some time. First I transplanted clethra along the fence, so the shrubs would gradually provide a stop for hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. Summer Sweet, as they call it, took hold over the winter and grow slowly. I have one or two spares in the front yard, plus a large, wide shrub.
Next I planted a number of David Austin roses along the fence and in the wild garden, so more people could see the blooms. My neighbor across the street yelled, with a big smile, "Thank you for the flowers!" I said, "There are a lot more coming."
The lectures and Greek lesson always have roses, and they are given away. I often take several samples to various houses, too, which is fun. Father's Day is a handy time to drop off a sample at each home.
Queen of Sweden, David Austin Rose
I put up four hummingbird feeders along the fence, adding another to view from the kitchen window, and another in the front yard. Hummers guard their favorite feeders and wait high up in the trees to dive down and scare the hummer competition away.
Some birdfood trays are available here and there, front and back.
In moving hostas from the front to the back I accidentally duplicated them, because their roots start over again. That gives the front and back gardens a place to give hosta flowers feeding hummers easily and at different times, not all at once.
Clethra - I was growing them without knowing anything about them.
The fragrance stops people caught in a breeze flowing through the garden. Everyone loves the butterflies because their 100% lawn environment does not attract butterflies, bees, or birds.
We had some significant rains, but we also had hot weather. The backyard is more like powder than soil.
I have rain from the barrels, so I used that to move some clethra, aka Summer Sweet. I call it Cinnabon for the combination of cinnamon and a sweetness that invites bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. People also call the shrub Hummingbird.
I get the most scent in the fall when a breeze sweeps through the garden and the other flowers are no longer dominant (mints, Joe Pye, roses). This is a good time to plant or move shrubs, so I am having fun with that.
I moved three in the backyard to give them more sun and to offer our doggy daycare neighbor the beauty and fragrance of the shrubs.
To prepare a new spot, I dig a small area (clay soil, often hard as a rock) and pour a bucket of water on it. Overnight it will soften but may need another bucket or even a deeper hole to contain moist soil.
To move the shrub I first pour plenty of water on it, often two days in a row. A narrow, heavy duty spade works well to dislodge the root system and lift the shrub by its main branch. The transplanted get extra rainwater from the barrel afterwards. My family heritage as a French peasant carrying water and digging weeds makes the chores automatical.
I could not resist even more Hummingbird shrubs in the front yard, so I have been nurturing them as well. I will move the smaller ones around because it is fun, relaxing, and encouraging for those who want to do the same.
The main Cinnabon in the front sprouted a clone so I will try moving the small version along the backyard fence.
The front yard was almost foggy with fragrance this year, and everyone enjoyed the bees, butterflies, birds, and hummingbirds. Variety builds up the populations, and the Lord of Creation manages their unique jobs and attributes.
Hard work that we enjoy is called a hobby, and I am happy to be burdened in such a relaxing way.
The Creation Garden should start with insects, which will have a profound effect on the final outcome, perhaps turning the gardener into an etymologist. This video wobbles around a lot, but the content is good. The topic demands Hollywood studio equipment to zoom in on the wee little creatures without scaring them away.
Most people would like a neater garden than the one displayed, but the principles are the same. If gardeners plan for beneficial insects and spiders, they will decrease pest damage to almost zero, without cost and without man-made toxins.
The names are enough to make anyone dizzy at first. How do I know which plants to encourage for which beneficials? The answer is simple - encourage some and let God sort out the feeding and breeding.
Never use pesticides in the garden. Weed-killers and fungicides are also discouraged. The only exceptions for weed-killers would be an obnoxious public nuisance, like Poison Ivy, Giant Hogweed, or Poison Hemlock.
Every member of the carrot family is friendly to beneficials, including carrots blooming in their second year. The carrot flowers in the video look like Queen Ann's Lace, which is called Wild Carrot. Some would yank the QAL in the yard. I encourage it and plant more along the margins.
Plants with a distinctive fragrance and tiny flowers attract the best insects, albeit without producing photogenic flowers. Such plants are beautiful with a macro lens: Borage and Mint families.
Most plants in the herb section are attractive to beneficials.
A plant can be big and ugly, like Comfrey, yet make up for its bulk and plain appearance by producing hundreds of flowers for butterflies and bees.
Unusual and Fun Plants
Most of us have a basic knowledge of plants, and we look for old favorites, which remind us of the past. Here are some examples of new plants that surprised me, several from Almost Eden next door.
Joe Pye Weed
I kept hearing this name and finding the plant gone later in the season. Finally I ordered two and saw them reach a respectable size the first year. Beware of such a modest start. The second year it reached its full size, blooming at 6 - 7 feet, with large lavender flowers. The plant smelled like foot cream but the flowers are more like vanilla. In the first and second years, butterflies and beneficials always flocked around it and flew away from the bloom. Late in the season it can look old and weedy, true to its name, but new plant and flower growth continue. Always order this one early.
Clethra - Summer Sweet - Cinnabon Shrub - Prima Donna
I obtained two of these from Almost Eden and moved them to the rose garden once Chaste Tree elbowed them aside. This one is a star and deserves a place of honor. It grows about 5 feet tall and blooms later in the season, like Joe Pye. When I bumped its flowers in the past, tiny insects would exit, almost like pixie dust. After I gave the two shrubs a spotlight in the front, I noticed the shrub's unique sweet cinnamon fragrance. If I forget the shrub, a damp breeze from the garden reminds me of its star status.
Chaste Tree - Medicine Shrub
This shrub loves the sun, hates being watering, comes alive from pruning, and smells like lineament. Twice I did my extra one wrong. Twice I went back to the directions and pruned it back hard. Both times a sickly or dead shrub burst into leaves again. This one will grow rather big for the garden but can be pruned easily. Its pure blue flowers are adored by bumble bees, so its constant supply and unusual looks are enhanced by the constant motion of the bees. Its oil is sold for a very high price.
