THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, JUly 28, 2023 Page 15 Saugus Gardens in the Summer Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener I f we look up, we will see the full moon on August 1 and another near the end of the month on August 30. In Ireland, August 1 is known as Lughnasa. The meaning, traditions and even the spelling of the holiday name vary from place to place and over time, as pagan and Christian traditions have blended, and agricultural activities vary. It is often seen as a harvest festival celebrating grains and bilberries (Vaccinium myrtillus, a European fruit similar to a blueberry). The community garden at St. John’s Church has purple blossoms succeeded by deep purple elongating berries on several plants in the raised beds. Eggplant (Solanum melongena) has pale purple five petalled flowers with yellow stamens – very popular with the bees which seek them out. Since most of us think of eggplant as a vegetable, it may be startling to consider that botanically the fruit of the eggplant is classified as a berry. I reached on my bookshelf for “The Random House College Dictionary” my father gave me as a graduation gift from Saugus High in 1973. It has six definitions for this word, and the third one is “a simple fruit having a pulpy pericarp in which the seeds are embedded, as the grape, gooseberry, current, tomato, etc.” In addition to tomatoes and eggplants, other familiar vegetables classified as a berry are chili peppers and sweet peppers (varieties of Capsicum annuum) – both in the potato or nightshade family (Solanaceae). Anyone playing golf at Cedar Glen or even driving past it on Water Street can appreciate the flowering “lily of the valley” tree near the pumphouse. Most showy flowering trees bloom in spring, but easDee LeMay’s basket is filled with green beans, the first harvest from the garden at St. John’s for the food pantry this season. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) “Lily of the valley” tree is in bloom beside the pump house at Cedar Glen Golf Course. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) ily viewed from the parking lot and clubhouse is a native North American tree that is blooming now. It is also known as sourwood and sorrel tree (Oxydendrum arboreum). It is easy to see where it gets the first of its common names, since the clusters of white bell shaped flowers resemble the blossoms of lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis). They are not closely related. The tree is actually a member of the heath family (Ericaceae), which includes cranberry and blueberry (Vaccinium spp.), whose flowers are somewhat similar white bells, and such popular landscape shrubs as rhododendron (Rhododendron spp.), azalea (Rhododendron spp.) and mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia). This tree can sometimes be found wild in Connecticut but is more common in woods somewhat farther south. In addition to blooming for several months in the summer, the fall foliage color is bright red, not unlike the leaf color of blueberries in the fall. Cedar Glen Golf Course A bumblebee finds delight in the blossoms of an eggplant at the community vegetable beds at St. John’s Church. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) was founded in 1928, a few years before the adjacent Breakheart Hill Farm, which eventually became Breakheart Reservation, was sold to the state. From the clubhouse/restaurant on Water Street, there are peaceful views of green grass and trees. The Saugus River meanders through the grounds, and golfers sometimes look up from the tee and find deer, otters and other wildlife in the distance. It is also home to many birds, whose songs can be heard throughout the day. Another native, woody plant blooming right now is buttonbush (Cephalanthus Buttonbush, which is blooming in my backyard, is a native shrub with a very striking flower head. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) The library landscape features chalk drawings of summer butterflies and flowers to celebrate the summer reading program. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) occidentalis). Named for the spherical shape of its flower heads, like the round buttons popular on ladies’ clothes in the 19th century, nowadays we might say it bears a resemblance to microscope views of a certain virus we have all become familiar with these last three years! Buttonbush can often be seen at the edges of streams and ponds in our area, though it is not attention-getting except when in bloom. Editor’s Note: Laura Eisener is a landscape design consultant who helps homeowners with landscape design, plant selection and placement of trees and shrubs, as well as 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.
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