Trilliums

Native Americans considered the root of the Trillium to be sacred. They would use the root to create an extraction that would treat PMS, as well as ease the pain of childbirth. Their warriors would chew the root as they went into battle, giving them protection and strength. We have learned that the root indeed promotes menstruation, is antispasmodic, as well as diuretic and antiseptic.

The white odourless Trillium is the official flower of Ontario, and is featured on the Franco Ontarian flag. They are protected in provincial parks as well as land that is owned by conservation authorities, where it is illegal to pick them. Picking a trillium prevents the leaf-like bracts from producing food. Once a plant has been cut, it takes about 7 years to recover and flower again.

Part of the lily order, trilliums take about fifteen years to grow from seed to bloom. They are a favourite food for deer. Ants and mice spread the seeds, which is why they are usually found in clusters. There are white and red varieties, and the white flowers turn pink as they age. The leaves are edible, and have a slight sunflower taste to them. 

Prairie Sun or Gloriosa Daisy

Today, Robert (our founder) planted 108 of these gorgeous sunny flowers as a tribute to Sangit Surabhi and Pavaka Ensemble. These wonderful musicians perform the music of Sri Chimnoy in many concerts, mostly free, in Ottawa and the surrounding area. To celebrate the first concert at The Yoga Garden, they will be performing in our Amphitheatre, and anyone is welcome to attend. See www.yogagarden.ca for more information.

These thick stemmed and multi-branching plants grow to be 2-3 feet tall with blooms 5 inches across. This particular variety’s color remains stable, and they flourish in hot and humid weather - perfect for our climate out here in the hills of South Quebec! They love plenty of sunshine, and space. They grow best if planted about 2 feet apart.

Historically, Native Americans used the plant to wash sores and swellings, as a poultice for snake bites and for treating worms and colds in children. Prairie Sun are great as a border in the garden, and look spectacular in a vase. Make sure to leave the late blooms on the stem at the end of the season as the cones harden and become a tasty treat for birds. 

Echinacea

Carrying Echinacea with you during tough times is thought to provide inner strength. In the 19th century, echinacea was the most commonly used plant drug. Its first documented use was for snakebites, anthrax, and relief of pain, and Native Americans had been using it long before for its general medicinal properties, and to treat symptoms that come with colds and flus.

Echinacea (derived from echinos – Greek for prickly) is a Native American perrenial flower that blooms abundantly into late autumn. The unbranched stems can stand two to three feet tall with typically purple or yellow petals. There are 9 known species of the Echinacea plant. The one that grows abundantly at The Yoga Garden is the Narrow Leaf Augustofolia with pale purple petals. This species has the highest concentration of the medicinal ingredient echinacoside.

Echinacea is commonly used to treat or prevent colds and flus. It stimulates the body’s immune system and wards off infections, and has also been used as a laxative. Chewing on echinacea numbs the tongue temporarily, but it’s a sign of an active compound called alkylamines. It is most effective to use echinacea at the first sign of infection. The whole plant can be used fresh or dried in teas, juices, extracts, or preparations for external use. The roots are the most potent part of the plant, and are best if harvested in the fourth year.

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Pulmonaria or Lungwort

In the times of the Doctrine of Signatures, it was thought that the outward appearance of a plant gave an indication of the ailments it would cure. The leaves of Lungwort resemble a diseased lung, hence was used for bronchitis and tuberculosis. Today, a tea made from the leaves is used to treat respiratory problems, coughs, asthma, flus and colds. The leaves are mild in flavour and make a visually interesting addition to mixed salads. The distilled water made from the plant can be used as an effective eyewash for tired eyes. It is mildly diuretic, and high in fibre and contains vitamin B and C, and Iron. 

Lungwort, or Pulmonaria, has many nicknames due to its unique spotted leaves and colored flowers. It was named Soldiers and Sailors because blue and pink flowers can occur on the same stem, Spotted dog because of its spotted leaves, as well as Joseph and Mary, Jerusalem Cowslip, Bethlehem Sage, among many others.  

Pulmonaria grows best in moist conditions, and low to the ground. The flowers range from shades of purple to pink and red, and appear early in the spring. They shy away from the heat, but return in autumn when temperatures cool down. The flowering stems are rough and covered with bristly hairs, and the leaves have polka-dot like spots.

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Beebalm

Bergamot, Monarda, Horsemint, or Oswego Tea are the many names this perrenial member of the mint family goes by. Of the 16 species that range in color from red, to pink, to light purple, Monarda Didyma with its bright red crimson petals is the most familiar at The Yoga Garden. You’ll find it in the Root Chakra section of the Spiral Garden. Beebalm is a wild native american flower that grows in moist meadows, hillsides and forest clearings up to 5000 feet in elevation.
 
Beebalm is the natural source of Thymol, an antispectic. It is used in mouthwashes, footbaths, or as a wash for minor cuts and scrapes. The plant’s essential oils are used for food, flavouring (not to be confused with the Citrus Bergamia that is used for Earl Grey), and medicine. The entire above ground plant is edible, and looks stunning in a salad. Monarda’s plumes attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and pollinating insects. It works wonders around small vegetable crops as the oils in its roots keep subterranean pests away. It is a great companion plant for the tomato as it improves both health and flavour.
 
The Native Americans used this native plant as a strong antiseptic for infections and minor wounds. Aftert the Boston Tea Party, it was shared by the Natives to settlers of the Oswego region of New York as a replacement for black tea, hence to avoid taxation on tea by the British. In 2010 in Corpus Christi, Texas, police officers began removing over 400 plants from a city park because of its similarities with the cannabis plant – until tests proved that it was in fact horsemint. Wild bergamot is feminine in nature and is associated with the moon and the element of air. It has been used to induce sweating at sweat lodges, and in spells for fertility, protection, and to develop psychic powers.

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Daffodil / Narcissus

There is a Victorian Legend that suggests whenever a selfless act is performed, a star is plucked from the sky and turned into a Daffodil. An alternate name, Narcissus, is related to the youth of Greek Mythology who became so obsessed with his reflection in the water, he became a flower forever gazing down at his own image. Their bright yellow is a perfect colour representation of the third chakra - symbolizing brilliant energy, like the sun. To bring good fortune to someone, present the flowers in bunches. They are a symbol of unrequited love, vanity, and wealth.
 
Daffodils are native to Spain, Portugal and states around the Mediterranean Sea as well as Turkey and in the Middle East. In the traditional medicine of kampo in Japan, wounds were treated with a blend of wheat flower paste and Narcissus root, but in modern day it is no longer on the kampo herb list. Traditionally yellow but have been cultivated in various colors, the half to five inch blooms can stand two inches to two feet tall. They are also known as Narcissus (meaning “benumbed”), jonquils, the Lent Lily, as it is a spring flowering bulb.
 
Daffodils are not edible in any way, although the bulbs are easily confused with onions - they contain a narcotic. A poison called lycorine is also contained in the bulb and leaves and should be avoided. Alternatively, if you have trouble with rabbits, squirrels, or other herbivores, they will avoid the plant because of its toxins and sharp crystals of calcium oxalate. They make a lovely protective border around your garden.

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Tulips

An oriental legend says that a young Persian man named Ferhad fell in love with a maiden by the name of Shirin. When Shirin rejected Ferhad’s feelings, he went into the desert to die of a broken heart, and as he pined, each tear fell into the sand turned into a beautiful tulip. Tulips are usually a declaration of love - red tulips indicate irresistible love, while yellow denotes hopeless love…and cheerful smiles! White tulips symbolize heaven and purity, so a white tulip garden could symbolize heaven on earth.

Tulips are perennials with bright flowers that thrive in places with long cool springs and dry summers. They can grow anywhere from 4 to 28 inches in height. Most species will only produce one flower per stem, and they come in a wide variety of colors except for pure blue. Some are striped, which is the result of natural variation in the upper and lower layers of pigment, which are shown in the pictures from our garden. The name Tulip is ultimately derived from the Persian word “dulband”, or turban. Some parts of the tulip are edible, provided they haven’t been treated with pesticides or fungicides. Recipes for tulips include using the petals as cups for mousse, as little dishes for appetizers, and for salad dressings. Tulip petals can even be fermented to make wine.
 
Cultivation of Tulips began in the Ottoman Empire (Turkish Empire). In the late 1500’s they were planted at the Imperial Botanical Gardens fo Vienna, at Leiden University. These tulips would eventually lead to Tulip Mania and the commercial tulip industry in Holland. Tulips became a form of currency they were so expensive – a bed of tulips could purchase a small house! The Ottawa Tulip Festival happens yearly since 1945. The Dutch Royal Family sent 100 000 tulip bulbs to Ottawa in gratitude for Canadians sheltering Princess Juilanna and her daughters during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands in the Second World War.

(All photos were taken at The Yoga Garden)

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Anise Hyssop

(a-ney hi-sep)

Traditionally, Native Americans used Anise Hyssop medicinally for coughs, fevers, and wounds, as well as a breath freshener, a tea, and a sweetener. The Cree and Chippewa would include it in protective medicine bundles. The Cheyenne used the tea to relieve depression, or a “dispirited heart”. Its flower essence is said to encourage honest communication, to keep away anxiety before performances, and to bring back “sweetness” after a time of unprecedented guilt.

Anise Hyssop is neither Anise nor Hyssop! It’s a member of the mint family, also known as Liquorice Mint. The leaves have a pleasant anise-like scent, and although the bloom has a liquorice aroma, it also has notes of lemon, pine, sage, black pepper, and camphor. Its tubular blue violet flowers attract hummingbirds as well as bees, who make a light fragrant honey from the nectar. Anise Hyssop is a perennial that thrives in well drained soil and will grow to be 2-4 feet in height. Its length and large blooms look beautiful as a backdrop to a garden, even when the blooms have dried in the winter.

The anise scented leaves are lovely in tea or used as a seasoning. You can also try crumbling the tangy flowers over fruit salad. The dried flowers keep their liquorice fragrance very well, and retain an indigo hue, which makes them great for potpourri. Drying the leaves, then adding them to warm honey and allowing them to sit for a month will produce a lightly flavoured honey.

(All photos taken at The Yoga Garden.)

by Fjola Sprague-Cole

Bloomin’ Fridays! - The Crocus

It’s not uncommon to see a Crocus bloom coming through a light late snowfall. Crocuses are a hardy and courageous little perrenial plant native to central and southern Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, across Central Asia to western China. They are one of the first to bloom in spring, which makes them a favourite for gardeners. They naturalise very well in grass and grow best in full sun or light shade, in well drained soil. Interestingly, the petals close up in the evening when it gets cold and open back up in the morning. It is important to wait to mow the grass until six weeks after they bloom to ensure the cormels are large enough to flower the next year.

Of the 80 different species of Crocus, the stigma of the Crocus Sativus is used for Saffron, one of the most expensive spices on the market. Some 75,000 flowers are needed to produce one pound of dry saffron. Saffron contains essential oils, calcium, phosphorus, glycosides, vitamins and the water-soluble dye crocin. Saffron lessens menstrual pain, is good for libido, and has shown promise as a new and alternative treatment for a variety of cancers. The bulbs of some “spring crocus” varieties are edible, but the “autumn” varieties are poisonous and often mixed together with the spring. It is recommended to eat only correctly produced bulbs and saffron by industrial saffron cultivators.

The name crocus ultimately comes from a derivation of a Sanskrit word “kunkumam”, or saffron. Cultivation and harvesting of crocus was first documented in the Mediterranean (island of Crete). The crocus is a symbol of the feelings of new love, and falling in love, and is associated with Valentine’s Day. It also symbolizes youthful gladness, attachment, and cheerfulness.

(All pictures shown were taken at The Yoga Garden)

by Fjola Sprague-Cole