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Rain Garden Rambles -
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Overflowing Abundance
August 15, 2022
Have you had a chance to visit the STB rain garden? It is peaking right now in blossoms and fruit. Bees make a constant hum. You may see a butterfly. It is a thriving wet meadow ecosystem.
Pause and admire the pure white of Boneset, the startling magenta of Purple Coneflower, the soothing lavender of Purple Giant Hyssop, the cheerful yellow of Cut-leaved Coneflower.
Look carefully. Our garden is not only for pollinators. We have made sure to provide for our bird kin too. There are dogwood berries and pin cherries tucked in amongst the flowers for late summer and fall migration food.
It is a living meditation. Blessed.
“Give, and it will be given to you…good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. “ Luke 6:38
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We’re in Clover
July 15, 2022
To be “in clover” means “to prosper.”It’s true, our rain garden is prospering. So in a very real way STB is in clover.
Not the white or pink three-leaved types you know best. Those species in your lawn (lovely in their own way) come originally from Europe.
Our native US clovers, evolved with our native insects, look quite different. Both purple prairie clover and white prairie clover look a bit like colorful thimbles on stems with feathery leaves. They are part of our rain garden mix as well as components of our larger prairie.
They aren’t large. You need to stop and look at them closely to appreciate their beauty. This should come easily if you remember how many hours you spent lying on the lawn looking for four-leaved clovers as a kid!
Bees, on the other hand, have no problem finding them for nectar and pollen.
“To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee, One clover, and a bee, And revery. The revery alone will do, If bees are few. “
Emily Dickinson
Photos
Purple Prairie Clover (Dalea purpurea)
White Prairie Clover (Dalea candida)
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Rain Garden Rambles
July 8, 2022
It’s not your typical rain garden. No—our STB rain garden is something special.
It was specifically designed by ecologists to mimic a Minnesota prairie wet meadow. Created to provide ample food sources for a variety of pollinators, it was planted with native plants on the absolute last day of the grant funding in November 2019 by dedicated volunteers (you know who you are!).
In the ensuing 2.5 years, it has continued to grow and fill in. Wildflowers bloom, attract pollinators, set seed, and spread just like what happens in a natural wetland depression.
We leave the stalks standing through the winter so that they can drop their seeds or provide food for birds. Come spring, we remove that excess dead material and enjoy seeing our native perennials green up and eventually blossom.
One of the first to bloom is Blue Giant Hyssop. Pluck one of its leaves, crush it in your hand and smell the delightful anise scent. And while you are there, look to see who is visiting the blossoms.
It’s well worth a weekly inspection to keep up with the progression of blooms.
Beth Tiller
Photo
Blue Giant Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
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