April Flowers
Daisy and sweet pea are this month’s birth flowers. The first is a symbol of innocence and purity, while the latter represents blissful pleasure. If you wish to brighten someone’s day, a simple bouquet of fern and daisies will speak volumes. A gift of fragrant sweet pea, on the other hand, is best reserved for a sweet goodbye.
Every spring is the only spring — a perpetual astonishment. — Ellis Peters
April Love Song
If ever there were a more delicious poem than April, perhaps only the bluebird would know it. Or the nectar-drunk duskywing. Or the glossy black rat snake, so entranced by the color of the robin’s egg that he swallows the pastel vessel whole.
April is here. Sow the beets and the broccoli. Plant the beans and the cukes. Harvest the tender green shoots of asparagus.
Welcome the rain. Let it kiss you, mused Harlem jazz poet Langston Hughes. Listen to its “sleep-song” on your roof at night.
Earth Day falls on Saturday, April 22. This month, gift the Earth a poem of love. Plant a tree in the garden. Buy local produce. Organize a community cleanup. And when the Earth sings, listen.
Let the rain kiss you.
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops.
Let the rain sing you a lullaby.
The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk.
The rain makes running pools in the gutter.
The rain plays a little sleep-song on our roof at night —
And I love the rain.
— Langston Hughes, “April Rain Song”
Must-See Moon
According to National Geographic, one of the “Top 7 Must-See Sky Events for 2017” will occur on Monday, April 10. On this dreamy spring night, just moments after sunset, Jupiter and the near-full Pink Moon will rise together in the eastern sky like forbidden lovers.
The Old Farmer’s Almanac speculates that a full moon in April brings frost. While it’s not actually pink, Algonquin tribes likely named this month’s full moon for the wild ground phlox that blooms with the arrival of spring. Also called the Sprouting Grass, Fish and Egg Moon, if the full Pink Moon rises pale on April 11, bet your folklore-loving bippy it will rain.
A Few Delicious Words
Henry James once mused that “summer afternoon” were perhaps the “two most beautiful words in the English language.”
“Easter brunch” make a
lovely pair.
Ditto “asparagus frittata.”
So if you find yourself playing host on Sunday, April 16, and life gives you fresh asparagus spears, steam until tender then add them to your favorite egg dish.
The Medicine Chest
Want to try your hand at an herb garden? Start now. Since most herbs thrive in full or filtered sun, carve out a cozy outdoor space with optimal light and drainage. Then, allow yourself to dream. Conjure up visions of lush beds with tidy labels, dark opal basil tangled with pineapple sage, aromatic bundles of herbs hanging upside down inside the coolest rooms of the house. Whether it’s medieval apothecary or fresh pesto that you’re craving, April is here to help make manifest your fantasy.
Here’s what to plant this month. Cue “Scarborough Fair” for reference.
Parsley – Rich in cancer-fighting compounds.
Sage – Digestive aid.
Rosemary – Improves memory.
Thyme – Antiseptic and anti-fungal properties. PS
