Springtime for Living Medicines in East Van

An update from the Living Medicine Gardens Spring Work Bee, Sunday May 15 -Just as winter had its last, mid-May laugh (the plants, as well as us, have been waiting for this bizarre cold spell to pass so they can get down to what they do best), the Living Medicine Gardeners took to the soil to ready the gardens for the coming growing season. A few plant warriors braved the rain, the cold, and the dive-bombing crow to remove some entrenched bulbous weeds, plant and transplant the newest additions to the garden, and set up a barrier to re-direct stray basketballs (the gardens are next to an elementary school basketball court). The beautiful signs we created last fall are up, the passionflower and hops vines are in the soil, new seeds have been planted (Ashwagandha, Chinese Licorice, Tobacco and more), the Mint Patch has been rejuvenated and is ready to supply alarming amounts of fresh tea herb to old and young alike, and all the unwanted ornamentals have been cleared out and sent packing (they certainly have their fair share of turf elsewhere!). Meanwhile, the Yarrow, Calendula, and Clover are coming back and the Sweet Cicely and Valerian are starting to flower – it's looking to be a beautiful growing season!We'll be having further work bees as the summer progresses, so stay tuned! There's always room for more to come and get their hands dirty, and we're throwing around ideas for art and carpentry projects to make the gardens a more comfortable and inspiring place – watering sculptures, willow weaving, and herb spirals are some of the ideas, and we need people to help make them happen!If you're interested in being on our list, or want to know when the next work bee will be, or have ideas or feedback, email us at gardens@livingmedicineproject.ca.