Often referred to as the magical month of May, there’s a feeling of enchantment as spring transforms the world into a colorful garden. However, in northern New England spring takes its time getting here, but the bees and other pollinators don’t seem to have gotten the memo. When they emerge, there’s little to sustain them and they need all the help they can get.
In addition to being important for pollinating crops, the honeybee’s long and significant relationship with people dates back to the Neolithic era. The bee was sacred to the Great Goddess and its ability to produce honey echoed her power and role as provider and nurturer. Associated with the power of regeneration, bees represented the quickening life force of nature. Priestesses who served in the temples of Rhea, Cybele, Demeter, and Persephone were called melissae, from the Greek meaning “bee.” Across many cultures, the bee has been a symbol of abundance, community, and fertility.
To help honeybees and other pollinators get by until the trees blossom and gardens bloom the practice of no-mow May has been catching on. Besides, there’s enough to do around the house and in the yard so waiting until the end of the month to get the lawn mower out buys some time for other chores. Sure, the grass gets a little shaggy but hidden within are small wildflowers that tide the bees over until they can feast. These flowers are also little bundles of magic with a lot of folklore.
Not so hidden is the dandelion, the bane of anyone who wants a perfect lawn. The dandelion flower looks like the sun and its round seed head like the moon. According to folklore, making a wish and blowing away the fluffy white seeds would make it come true. Seeds floating on the air were called fairies and it was considered lucky to catch one. The dandelion was believed to be powerful enough to ward off witches on Midsummer’s Eve. The dandelion aids in heightening awareness for honing psychic skills.
The color of violet flowers ranges from dark purple, to bluish, to white. In Germany, it was believed that brushing the first three violets of spring across the eyes provided protection from the evil eye. Because of the sweet violet’s seductively alluring scent, the ancient Greeks and Romans associated it with love. A flower of hope and healing, the violet is instrumental for clearing away negative energy.
Also known as moon clover, white clover has tiny, white to pale pink flowers in spherical clusters. Although the leaves usually have three leaflets, they can have four or more. In England, wearing a clover leaf in a shoe was part of a love spell. And of course, the four-leaf clover has been regarded as especially lucky. As a magic talisman, it enabled the wearer to see faeries and to enter the faery realm. Clover is a protective plant that can ward off a jinx and break hexes.
These are but a few of the early wildflowers that aid bees and you can do your part by allowing these plants to grow. So, leave that mower in the shed and dance barefooted across the grass. Let magic bloom in your lawn as you give bees a chance and add a little more color to your life.