Month: March 2016

 The True Meaning of St. Patrick’s Day

There aren’t too many people walking down the street at any moment of the day that can explain the story and purpose of St. Patrick’s Day. Today’s society has turned this particular holiday into a never-ending party. The only thing people truly celebrate on March 17th is excess.

Wherever did the idea of green beer, green rivers, and corned beef originate? We are all familiar with the many ways in which the world has commercialized St. Patrick’s Day. It is time to take a look at the actual origin of the holiday.

Take a moment of time to ponder upon some of the most accurate histories behind the celebration of this overtly green day. Next year, there may be more of a connection with this particular square on the calendar.

Saint Patrick was not Irish.

It seems a bit deceiving, but Saint Patrick was not born in Ireland. He was a British native, who was captured and enslaved in Ireland as a sheep herder for six years when he was only a young man.

Once he returned to England, the apostle was instructed by a higher power to venture back to Ireland and spread the word of Christ. Here is where he earned his reputation as a famed apostle to the country.

Liberating Ireland of snakes was only a metaphor.

Another hare-brained belief that some people still maintain is that St. Patrick was responsible for ridding Ireland of snakes. Though there aren’t any snakes in Ireland, this man was certainly not responsible for their absence.

The water surrounding the Emerald Isle is too cold for any snakes to travel to Ireland. This is excellent news for the large chunk of the world’s population that fear the slithering reptiles.

Celebration slowly morphed into something else.

It would be easy to say that commercialism took over St. Patrick’s Day rather quickly, but that would be dreadfully inaccurate. When St. Patrick died, there was little to no remembrance celebration.

Word of mouth spread and exaggerated many stories about the life of the Saint. Eventually, there was a feast brought into a tradition in tribute to the Christian saint. This was only the beginning of the transition.

It is not very surprising to hear that the U.S. was deemed responsible for turning the whole day into a drunken rager. Capitalism can work wonders when there’s any reason for celebration.

A four-leafed clover is not a shamrock. There is also lots of shade perennials with pretty green foliage.

A shamrock is a three-leafed stem section of a clover plant. The four-leafed clover is a genetic mutation in the plant’s chromosome formation. The Guinness Book of World Records recorded the largest clover stem having 56 leaves.

The Shamrock got its reputation from St. Patrick himself. He used to say that the three leaves represented the Holy Trinity, and the four-leafed clover adds the blessing of God. It was simply a tool for his apostolic mission.

Wearing green is a widespread practice. Trumpet vines are great for greenery with color also.

Covering our wardrobe in green for one day of the year has nothing to do with the reason for the holiday. It is just kind of a common denominator. Shamrocks are green. Ireland’s flag sports green as a dominant color. Society took the concept and hit the ground running with the idea.

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Top Five Indoor Plants Your Cats Won’t Eat

Sometimes it proves to be quite the battle to find house plants that your furry friends won’t see as a succulent treat. Not only do you have to worry about the well-being of the plant, but you have to worry about whether or not the ingestion of the plant will harm your kitty. Here’s the good news. There are plenty of plants that don’t really appeal to the feline palate. You just have to have the right knowledge of your house plants. Try potting some of these unpalatable house plants. Most perennials are not appetizing also.

Lavender

You’ll love the sweet smell of this gorgeous plant, but your cats will keep their distance. For some reason, they hate the smell. If they do decide that they need to try it out, and ingest this plant, it won’t hurt them. Your kitty may feel a little bit sick to his/her stomach, but it won’t kill them. They’ll learn pretty quickly that Lavender doesn’t really bring forth delightful consequences, and they’ll leave it alone.

Rosemary

This is a great plant that will not only detour your cats, but it will make your dinner taste better too! The strong scent of Rosemary is another foul existence to the olfactory senses of your kitty. Like Lavender, they hate it! It’s also somewhat of a woody, prickly plant, so not the most attractive to your furry friends. Just make sure to keep it warm and dry. Rosemary has quite the distaste for cold, moist soil.

Scaredy Cat

It’s all in the name, Scaredy Cat. Your cat won’t really be afraid of this plant, but they won’t like it at all. The plant puts off the smell of dog urine to a cat, but don’t worry. The smell isn’t strong enough to bother a human unless the leaves are crushed or rubbed all over you. There is a small margin for error in this plant, as its effect is dependent upon the animal having a proper sense of smell. The effectiveness has been compared to that of catnip. Only about seventy percent (give or take a bit) of cats really react to catnip.

Cactus Plants

For obvious reasons, cats don’t like cactus plants. Your feline friends are most definitely smart enough to realize that they want nothing to do with this prickly plant. Cactus is also a very low maintenance house plant. They’re great at retaining water, so they won’t die if you forget to water them every once in a while. They’re strong.

Mint Plants

Minty plants are quite useful to humans. We can use them for food flavoring, and there are also some medicinal purposes, depending on which minty plant you’re referring to at the time. Luckily, in the feline world, minty flavors are not very palatable. They may try chewing on your mint leaves once, but they will soon find something very unsavory to their tiny taste buds. Mint leaves are usually quite vibrant and green. They’ll bring a refreshing element to your home.  

Top Plants to Build Your Own Mini-Wetland

It happens every day. Precious land that provides habitats for many different types of wildlife is being destroyed, but you’re not as powerless as you may feel. It’s entirely possible to create your own mini-wetland area in your own back yard. With a little research, you’ll find that most of your typical wetland plants don’t require a large reservoir of water to thrive. If you can find an area of your land that is naturally damp and equipped with a heavy clay soil, then you’ve got everything you need to get started.

Building your own personal wetland area will not only benefit your immediate environment, but you’ll be providing a nurturing habitat for many different types of creatures. Butterflies, bees, frogs, and several different types of birds will find your creation delightful. Your mini-wetland will also serve to store and filter your lawn’s runoff water when it rains. The bottom line benefit is that you’ll enjoy the true essence and beauty of nature in your own back yard. Here is a quick overview of a few plants you may want to consider integrating into your aquascape.

These trees are wetland soil tolerant.

Cottonwood Tree: You’ll usually find these being used for timber, but they don’t even produce the best of wood. It’s not the best for burning either. It doesn’t produce a high enough level of energy due to its quality and consistency. It does, however, provide a beautiful backdrop for nature and a home for several types of birds.

Swamp White Oak: Just another good addition to bring depth to your landscape. These trees are big, bushy, and strong.

Sycamore Trees: This tree’s distinctive bark coloring will add beauty to any mini-wetland area.

These shrubs are good for your wetlands.

Winterberry: This is a great ornamental shrub. It’s also very durable and easy to grow. Native American’s were known to use the berries from this shrub for medicinal purposes. They nicknamed the shrub a “fever bush”.

Inkberry: These are excellent, full bodied, hedge plants. They grow thick, and don’t take very much maintenance.

Pussy Willow: The look of the Pussy Willow’s furry catkins adds a subtle touch of color to any aquascape.

Herbaceous and flowering plants that thrive in shady, wet soils.

Ironweed: This plant will bloom with tiny purple blooms in the Spring to add unsuspecting color to your setup.

Blue Flag Iris: Everyone knows how beautiful the Iris can be in a pot. How much more beautiful would the blue flag iris plant be in its natural habitat?

Boneset: The Boneset will bring butterflies to your area. They love their clusters of white blossoms early in the spring.

Herbaceous and flowering plants that thrive in sunny, wet soils.

Jack-in-the-Pulpit: The flowers of this plant are something to behold. When they bloom, you’ll see a flower striped with purple and brown. It almost pops out of the stalk of the plant like a Jack-in-the-Box.

Cinnamon Fern: Named for its spore-bearing fronds, the Cinnamon Fern’s fronds look like cinnamon sticks.

Skunk Cabbage: This plant has extensive medicinal uses, but it’s also quite beautiful. With the coloring and shape of a red cabbage, there’s no mistaking how this plant got its name.