Medicinal Plants

Chester Garden Club's September meeting was enlivened by guest speaker, Laurie Lacey, whose topic was the use of medicinal properties found in native plants. President Sheila Knowlton-MacRury introduced Laurie as an artist and writer who has spent over 30 years in the study and practice of native medicines.


An engaging speaker, Laurie outlined the many types of plants that have been used with success by native Mi'kmak people over many decades. He told stories of his meetings with Mi'Kmak elders when he was a young researcher and illustrated his talk with slides of many of the plants and trees that are an important part of the medical component of native life.


Laurie is the author of Medicine Walk: Reconnecting to Mother Earth, published by Nimbus. More information about his work can be found on the internet.

October 18 will be a busy day for Club members. The annual fall clean-up of both the Cove Garden and Parade Square will take place on October 18, beginning at 10 AM. All members are asked to help in this autumn ritual. In the evening, the Club will welcome guest speaker Grant Nixon, who will give a presentation on "Photographing Your Garden." This is a topic dear to the heart of most gardeners and should be of great interest to all members. The meeting is called at 6:30 for 7 PM and will take place at St Stephen's Parish Community Centre in Chester.

Correction required

Apologies to those followers of this blog who were confused by a recent posting in which one plant was identified as a Brugmansia. Incorrect information was received, and apparently that photo was of a Cimicifuga (possibly C. chocolholic but Sandy's records are a little vague on that point). It does in fact have reddish-brown foliage and is growing in a shady place.

By way of apology, here's an image of a rainbow that appeared fleetingly over Chester last week.

And, as a postscript to the above reference to Cimicifuga, one can read about the plant on the most recent website posting of Dave's Garden Newsletter (September 20). Isn't it strange how worlds intersect!

Bloom Day continued

Following the recent post for September's Bloom Day North, we received a number of great photos from Sandy D (a regular contributor). These images were all dated on the 15th but a busy schedule prevented us from posting them until the 18th.

The lovely white "dinner plate" dahlia is an outstanding performer when viewed against the dark foliage in the background.

A blue hydrangea makes a bold statement on the edge of a woodland setting. The blooms in this garden, which boasts a resident dog, are protected from the ravages of Chester's deer. Sadly, your blogger's hydrangeas have once again been severely pruned by visiting ruminants.

Like tiny tears, the raindrops on this Rose of Sharon add to the beauty of its delicate bloom.

And, above, an elegant portrait of a Brugmansia (also known as Datura) which, according to The Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers published by Reader's Digest, belongs to the genus of evergreens grown for flowers that are borne mainly in late summer or autumn. This plant was not familiar to your blogger under either name, so the preceding info comes straight from the book.

Bloom Day North - September 15

This September's Bloom Day in Chester was marked by a series of changing weather patterns, beginning with a sunny morning that gave way to heavy clouds by early afternoon, which brought heavy rain and thunderstorms, followed by sunny skies and cooler temperatures. Despite the vagaries of weather, we managed to get a few shots of blooms in a local garden.

The sunny yellow day lily ("Sweet Child") is one that was part of a mass purchase by members of the Chester Garden Club two years ago. It has continued to produce blooms for several weeks in late summer.

The pink floribunda ("Knockout" if the garden records are accurate) has been prolific this year and, having survived Hurricane Earl, continues to bloom, whatever the weather.

The rose hips of the Rosa Rugosa ("Pink Pavement"), on the fence below, have proved to be very tempting morsels to the resident squirrels and chipmunks, all of whom leave the residue from their lunches on garden chairs and tables. Members of the Garden Club may find themselves competing for those rose hips to make a healthy tea if our speaker mentions them on September 20th in relation to his topic - the medicinal qualities of plants.

Last but not least, in addition to the annuals such as snapdraggon, nasturtiums and coleus that are still producing blooms, Chester gardeners are not above adding a few more exotic varieties to their planters and hanging baskets. The fuschia below has been a steady performer all summer long and shows no sign of letting up.

Colour Differences - flash vs. natural light

Last evening, when I posted several photos of a simple bouquet made up of flowers rescued from a garden before the hurricane swept over Chester, I noticed that the colours of the blooms were not as true as in real life or even as seen on my camera's screen. Those photos had been taken indoors with the use of a flash. This morning, as an experiment, I photographed each of the same

subjects in natural daylight and I believe the result is a sharper and slightly more vibrant image. Perhaps the contrast between the images of the two posts will prompt someone to send an e-mail to the Chester Garden Club with an explanation, as well as suggestions for improved photography in future.

This colours in this shot appear to be closer to the actual colour of the actual glads than that of yesterday's flash photography.

If anyone has photos related to the hurricane (that is, during the storm or perhaps in its wake), we would be pleased to receive them.

Hurricane Earl Let Us Off Easy

Despite making landfall in Lunenburg County as a Category 1 Hurricane, Earl was soon downgraded to a tropical storm and Chester residents escaped the worst of his fury. Having experienced the widespread devastation caused by hurricane Juan in 2003, however, most Nova Scotians had taken extra precautions this time around, which undoubtedly helped minimize the damage to gardens and boats.

As a gardener, your blogger was among those busy stowing lawn furniture, garden sculptures and container plants out of harm's way in advance of the storm, but it seemed prudent too to bring some of the blooms indoors rather than see them destroyed by the storm. Rudbeckias, gladioli and a few annuals brightened up a hall table.


Several spears of gladioli and a few snapdragons were among the other blooms rescued before the winds beat down neighbouring plants. Except for a few fallen trees and branches that blocked roads temporarily, there was actually little damage in the Chester area. In fact, two days after the storm had passed, and we were restoring all the items that had been trucked inside for safety, I was delighted to see a number of day lilies, roses and dahlias blooming in my own garden.

And now that September is here, the Chester Garden Club is gearing up for its regular monthly meetings, the first of which will take place on Monday, September 20th at St. Stephen's Parish Community Centre. The speaker will be Laurie Lacey and his topic will be Plants with Medicinal Properties. The doors open at 6:30 pm and the meeting will begin promptly at 7:00 pm. Annual dues ($20) are payable as of September 1st.