What's in Your Backyard?

It’s the peak of summer: time for cold drinks, mosquitoes and mowing the lawn.  This summer, my daughter learned how to make fresh lemonade for us.  She begged me to buy a bag of lemons each time I went to the grocer and we were then gifted with tart drinks of liquid sunlight made with the pure love of little girl hands.  Asheville has really been blessed with lovely rain showers, and because of our mild last winter, the mosquitoes were thicker than normal.  This gentle weather pattern has also made quite a lovely haven for a wide variety of plant-life here.  In the mountains, there are a multitude of independent eco-systems.  And no wonder- our mountains are 400 million years old.  The land here has had time to develop an intricate system of flora.  The myriad of “vegetation patterns in this region consist of species responding individually to a complex of temperature and moisture gradients associated primarily with elevation and landform,” http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/ja/ja_mcnab011.pdf .

I recently had the pleasure of taking a tour of my own yard with Gwen Fordham, the WizeWoman.  Gwen enthusiastically enjoyed my lengthy, un-mowed yard.  We forged through the ‘weeds’ and I was caught up in Gwen’s delight, as she mentioned to me that my yard was full of healing herbs.  She pointed out the broad-leaved plantain that I had growing in a thick sunny patch in back.

 Along the side of my house was another variety of this beauty; The English Plantain was flourishing with tall spiked flowers in the sunny South section of my yard. 

I remember hearing Gwen talk about Red Clover tea, and to my delight, the large purple blossoms were ready for harvest when Gwen and I walked the yard.  

Alongside and intertwined with the clover grew yarrow and spearmint.

Coneflowers (Echinacea) and Bee Balm (Bergamot) raised their lovely flower heads to the sun in the brightest Easterly section of the backyard.

And one of my all-time favorite plants in the yard: Lavender.   My 7 year old lavender is always buzzing with busy pollinators.  

 Comfrey, given to me by a neighbor, has grown like it's found it's true home.

The medicine in these plants has been used by Native American Indians for centuries.  At times, I allow myself to dream that my yard was once a personal pharmacy, and that the land here in Dry Ridge was used for healing.