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Page 12 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2021 Saugus gardens in the pandemic Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener t’s great weather for icicles! They have grown very long on the north side of my house. One of my icicles reached 60" long. The buildings of Saugus Ironworks have an impressive collection of icicles, too. When winter seems its coldI est, a little aromatherapy indoors never hurts. Oriental hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis), sometimes known as Dutch hyacinth, is one of the most fragrant of all flowers. Some people tell me they don’t like its scent, as it is very strong indoors, but I am one of the ones who like it. Flowers come in shades of purple from very dark to nearly blue, as well as pink, yellow, salmon and white. In another month and a half or so, we can expect hyacinths to be flowering in our gardens, but for now the bulbs forced into early bloom can be a stand-in for those still sleeping under the snow. French pussy willow, also known as goat willow (Salix caprea), is a European shrub often grown for its late winter flowers. We have a native pussy willow species (Salix discolor) which commonly grows here on the edges of ponds and streams. It typically blooms in February, often flowering through the snow. The flowers are grayish on both these species and look furry like a little gray kitten. Something blooming this early would not be very successful if it were not pollinated by wind, since at this time of year there is plenty of wind, while most self-rePUSSY WILLOW BRANCH AND FLOWER: You should not put them in water, but let them dry naturally in the air. (Courtesy photos to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) specting pollinators have not roused themselves for the spring. While pussy willows don’t have showy petals or fragrance to lure insects, most insects which do emerge on a warmish winter day will find their way to the flowers. Many kinds of bee, fly and ant are among them. Male and female flowers occur on separate plants, and since male flowers are slightly larger and showier, that is what you will find in most bouquets. Shrubs sold in nurseries are also almost always male for the same reason. However, if you find our American pussy willow out in the woods, it is not easy to distinguish them except at the point when they are in full bloom. Male plants can be recognized by their production of pollen, which is bright yellow in most willow species. A NICE DISPLAY FOR WINTER MONTHS: A pussy willow bouquet near fireplace. I store them in a vase in a closet and bring them out for display in January and February. The best way to enjoy a pussy willow bouquet for a long time is to get them when the buds have just opened but the flowers are not yet fully formed. At this point if you cut them from the shrub or purchase them from the florist, you should not put them in water, but let them dry naturally in the air. They can do this easily in a vase. Over time they will become somewhat brittle, but I have had pussy willows for several years that have not lost their shape or color. I store them in a vase in a closet and bring them out for display in January and February. If you wish to grow a new shrub from a purchased pussy willow bouquet, check that it is fresh and that there is a little green under the bark. Then you can put a stem or two in a vase with water, and roots will Special Town Meeting Members vote to create a committee that would take another look at Cliftondale Square revitalization By Mark E. Vogler T own Counsel John Vasapolli didn’t agree with the original language of a proposed article that focused on the revitalization of the Cliftondale Square business and housing district. “The duties of this committee include procurement of a parking and egress study, conducting polls and round table with property owners, collaborating with local and state agencies, exploring state grants, providing recommendations to the town manager for capital improvements and preparing zoning amendments,” Vasapolli wrote in a Feb. 11 legal opinion which concluded that Town Meeting was not authorized to vote to establish a committee in the way Article 3 was crafted by Precinct 2 Town Meeting Member Joe Vecchione. “Any planning for revitalization of the Cliftondale Square business and housing district as proposed in this article are duties that fall under the powers and duties of town manager through the planning department, the planning board and all other appointed employees and agents,” Vasapolli wrote. ‘It is a well settled principle of law that a town meeting is not authorized to establish committees or perform municipal duties that are otherwise vested by law in designated town officers. But Vasapolli worked with Vecchione to revise an article that still received unanimous approval of Town Meeting members at Tuesday night’s (Feb. 17) Special Town Meeting. A committee, comprised of IT’S SO COLD OUTSIDE! Icicles outside the window. grow within a few weeks. Completely dried out stems will not be able to grow roots. The gray, fuzzy flowers will elongate and in all likelihood produce greenish and then yellowish pollen-covered stamens, since most pussy willows sold are male. In a few weeks the flowers will shrivel and fall off and then green leaves will develop. At this point the new plant can be moved into a pot to await the weather warming up enough for the new plant to be put outside, usually in April or May. While we often think of robins as a sign of spring, not all of them migrate south for the winter. One kept up a cheery chirping with its friends when I walked by Pirate’s Glen recently. With worms being unavailable in the frozen ground, robins in winter subsist mostly on dried fruits and berries, like grapes, hawthorn and small crabapples, that are still hanging on trees and shrubs. At the nine members — six of them Town Meeting members appointed by Town Moderator Stephen N. Doherty, two selectmen and the town manager or one of his designees — will study ways to revitalize the Cliftondale Square business and housing district. “I think the committee is a great idea,” said Precinct 8 Town Meeting Member Thomas E. Traverse, who also chairs the Town Manager’s Economic Development Committee. The committee is charged with filing a report by Nov. 1 which will offer nonbinding recommendations for the revitalization of Cliftondale. Precinct 10 Town Meeting Member Steven C. DiVirgilio offered an amendment that would expand the committee from seven to nine-members. THE SCENT OF SPRING: Even in the middle of the winter, indoor flowers offer a preview of precious blooms to come. This pink hyacinth is one of the most fragrant of the hardy bulbs. feeder, they may eat unsalted peanuts and suet. Whether the robins in Lynnhurst stayed all winter or came north a little early I could not say, but robins do seem to become more numerous as spring approaches. Editor’s Note: Laura Eisener is a landscape design consultant who helps homeowners with landscape design and plant selection, placement of trees and shrubs, and perennials. She is a member of the Saugus Garden Club and offered to write a series of articles about “what’s blooming in town” shortly after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was inspired after seeing so many people taking up walking the streets in their neighborhoods as a way to get some exercise and get out of the house during the global pandemic. “I do wholeheartedly agree that Cliftondale Square belongs to Saugus,” Vecchione said. “I’m more inclined to open it up to all Town Meeting members,” he said. Planning Board Chair Peter A. Rossetti, Jr., who is also a Precinct 2 Town Meeting member who lives and works in Cliftondale, said he thought it would be a mistake to limit the committee to a small size. “I think it’s a mistake to exclude people,” he said. Precinct 10 Town Meeting Member Peter Manoogian advocated that Town Meeting members should “let the moderator moderate” in filling seats on the committee. “I’m sure the moderator can find the right balance of members,” Manoogian said.

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