We always have a fun time during our March meeting. It's our tradition to hold this meeting at Shady Acres Herb Farm.
Shady Acres Herb Farm . Theresa Mieseler from Shady Acres shared information about cloister gardens.
"Cloister - courtyard enclosed by a cloister or courtyard, open to the sky, enclosed by walls of the church & covered arcaded walkways of the monastic residential building. Monks could pray & meditate & enjoy fresh air without leaving the monastery. A fountain is set at the center of the crossed path that divide the garden in quadrants, each with a grass lawn & divided ornamental flower beds." "Plants of the Four Seasons". H.N. Abrams.
The Cloister Garden at the MN Landscape Arboretum is being redesigned. Theresa shared her vision for this special garden. Of special interest to me was the Hortulus garden. Hortulus was written by Walafrid Straebo, who lived from 808-849 on the border between Germany & Austria. He was a monk, a gardener, & a writer. Hortulus or Little Garden is a work about the joys & woes of his medieval garden. I am doing a little more research on Walafrid Strabo, so stay tuned.
On a snowy April morning a few of us got together to dream of spring & create some beautiful wet felted birdhouses. A little wool roving, some soapy water, a pool noodle, & some bubble wrap were all we needed to create these colorful abodes for our feathered friends.
In the wee hours of the morning, I looked out the window to see if I could see the Blood Moon, or the lunar eclipse. Today's eclipse was the first in a series of four lunar eclipses, called a tetrad. According to EarthSky.org, "It’s four successive total lunar eclipses, with no partial lunar eclipses in between, each of which is separated from the other by six lunar months (six full moons)" EarthSky.org Lunar Eclipses -2014-2015. These eclipses occur when the earth casts a shadow on the moon. Apparently, the coppery red color is light refracted from the sunrises & sunsets from around the world, making this moon even more beautiful. In doing some research, I did find out that the term Blood Moon for a lunar eclipse is a name given to the tetrad of lunar eclipses by John Hagee very recently in 2013, so that is a relatively recent name that the media has picked up on. Traditionally, the Hunters Moon, usually in November, was called the blood moon. The next tetrad will be in 2032 -2033, so mark you calendars & get out there & enjoy it. By the way, this pic was taken at 2:47 CDT, which was near the time of the total eclipse & that bright star along for the ride is Spica. 
