Creating a Butterfly Friendly Garden!

Creating a Butterfly Friendly Garden!
If you love the beauty of butterflies, this will be the post of you! As myself looking forward

to spring. I thought I would do  an post on the beauty of the Butterfly.
As for a butterfly Garden. It is simple as, 'If you build it', they will come.
The best butterfly gardens take a little planning, but are pretty self sufficient, once they are up and
blooming. Once you have chosen the right flowering plants for the right placement and
remember to provide some water and shelter, then  all you have to do is sit back
and watch for the flutter of the beautiful wings to come into your gardens.
Location-
Though open sunny meadows often come to mind when you think of butterflies, don't worry if you only
have just a small space. They will come wit the right location. A butterfly garden can be a small as a few pots
on your back porch in the city or as large as a your yard, what ever type it may be. Always make sure to
include some shady spots if possible, since some butterflies prefer them. Just remember that the best
butterfly gardens can sometimes look a little overgrown or even a little ragged. They don't always go
for the formal focal point if you are a pristine gardener if that is important to you.
Before You Plant-
You should always avoid any type of pesticides in your garden. Then once you have chosen a spot in
your garden, you can begin with the soil. Use plenty of compost within your soil if you can. This makes
your plants thrive without much additional fertilization, but of course there is very good soils you can
get at your local stores where they sell plants and flowers that will work just fine too. Not everyone can
use compost or has the time. I myself have been using compost for years in a large plastic bin. And it work great. And I have been using all pots for years on my small porch so- Yes! it can be done my friends and Followers:o) [Note: If you should some interest in compost I can do a post on how to do that even living in the city on a back porch!]
Butterfly Buffet-
Most butterflies get the majority of their diet from nectar producing plants, so these should make-up the

largest part of your garden. [note: Then you will have both a hummingbird and Butterfly garden!]  You will
want to pick out native plants when ever possible, as these will thrive with little care and often draw the most
butterflies to yur garden. You will also want to anchor you garden with a few larger nectar production
shrubs - flowering plants in a variety of colors, heights and sizes as well. Be sure to choose flowers in the
early spring as well as late fall as in the fall is when the butterflies sometimes struggle to find food.
Here are some of the Butterflies Favorites to get you started-
salvia-
lantana-
pentas-
aster-
marigolds-
zinnia-
coneflowers- [they come in many different colors]
buddleia- [in choice area's]
Of course not all butterflies rely on just nectar flowering plants. So for those butterflies here are some
flowers for them-
morning cloaks-
red-spotted purples-
Water Source-
Butterflies will get most of the water that they need from nectar in the flowering plants, but not all butterflies

use their delicate proboscises to sip water from dew drops in puddles. So you have to create a place for these few butterflies. What you can do is - first go to your local good -well and find either a medal, plastic,ceramic or thick glass large shallow dish. Once you get it home clean it very well. Then find a good place for it outside that the butterflies can get to it, usually a bit higher up. You might want to put some sand in the bottom of the shallow dish, then add clean water. You most remember to change the water often too.
It can get dirty fast. Also other creatures may use it like that of many birds too. So have fun with it .
Butterflies Raising their Young-
There are many kinds of plants that would provide butterflies to raise their young-caterpillars.

Some of these host plants are:
Milkweed for monarchs-
hollyhocks for painted ladies-
violets for great spangledfri-
Some butterflies and moth caterpillars use trees too, so if you have
space consider adding ash or willow for:
tiger-
swallowtails
morning cloaks-
Butterflies are very fragile creatures and just a raindrop can seem more like a bowling ball to them.
So when bad weather threatens butterflies seek for shelter.
You can buy read made wooden butterfly houses, but if you have planted natural area's of tall grasses
thick shrubs either in your yard or in pots on your porches. Your butterflies can survive over the winter months in these small crevices. And even start a family with with caterpillars. I have seen myself many of
caterpillars in the fall foliage each autumn. So I would not toss the fallen browns leaves out there may be
some creatures in there..
Happy Gardening!

Love you All! Your Wendy!!!

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`"(✿◠‿◠)˙•٠•●c Celibate life♥´Magic Surrounds Us ƸӜƷ ♪♫♪♫♪❤❤
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Pomona

The Goddess Pomona-

I thought I would continue with different Gods & Goddesses

of different Counties. I find them all very fascinating and so very

different and similar in many ways. I hope you all my dear 

Friends and Follower will find these new Post interesting too.

YOUR WENDY!

'I am the ancient Apple Queen, 
As once I was so am I now.
For evermore a hope unseen,
Betwixt the blossom and the bough.
Ah, where's the river's hidden Gold!
And where the windy grave of Troy?
Yet come I as i came of old,
From out the heart of summer's joy.'
by William Morris

 Pomona was a Roman Goddess of the Ancient times,

and she was known as the ancient Apple Queen.

Pomona name was derived from the Latin word pomum,

which means fruit or apple.

In the time of the beautiful Pomona Goddess,

she loved all trees in ancient Rome, but the apple trees were

by far her favorite.

Pomona Goddess of Rome ruled over all gardens,

orchards, all types kinda trees that would bear fruits & nuts.
According to the Poet Ovidius, Pomona was said to be a wood Nymph. 
Now for all of you that having read my post of Nymphs I thought I might 
give you a brief narrative about what a Nymph/wood is. 
The Nymph - nymphe in Greek mythology & in Latin mythology to is a 
minor female of nature deity who is typically associated with a particular 
location or landforms.. There are five different varieties of Nymphs: 
1. Celestial Nymph 2. Water Nymphs 3. Land Nymphs 4. Plants Nymphs and finally the 
5. the Underworld Nymphs. 
Now from all the different Goddesses, nymphs are generally
regarded as divine spirits who animate nature and are usually depicted as 
beautiful young maidens who love to dance and sing

.
Being a Natural deity spirit as that of a Nymph has an amorous amount of freedom,
which truly sets them apart from the restricted and chaste wives and daughter of the

Greek Gods and Goddesses. 
So of these beautiful Nymphs are believed to dwell in the ancient Mountains, Groves
Cool springs, rivers, trees, lust valleys, hot springs and even cool grottoes which 
have been known to be a favorite of the Nymphs.

Although these beautiful nature spirit and divine Nymphs would never die of 
old age nor an illness. Plus they can also give birth to fully immortal children if they mate with

an god. They themselves are not necessarily immortal and can be 
beholden to death in various forms.

I hope this helps in the understanding to the nature of the 
Nymph.
Now as I said before earlier in my post of Pomona of Rome, 
she was said to be a wood nymph. How I found  found this is by the Poet Ovid, who I will cover
in this post too. I feel that he is very important in the live of Pomona . Anyway
It is said that Ovid In the myth that was narrated by the Poet Ovid, Pomona scorned the love 
of the woodland gods Silvanus and Picus, but she married Vertumnus after he tricked Pomona,
disguised as an old woman.
So Pomona and Vertumus shared a festival that was held on August 13. Her priest was 
called the flamen Pomonalis.
The pruning knife as Pomona is seen is some of the famous paintings was her attribute.

There is a grove that is sacred to her, which they called the Pomonal, it is located not far from Ostia, in the 
ancient port of Rome.
In this Sacred Grove Pomona was the Goddess of fruit trees, all the gardens and orchards. Unlike
many other Roman Goddesses and Gods, she doesn't have a Greek counterpart. Pomona watched 
over and protected all the fruit trees and she cared for their cultivation too.
She was not actually associated with the harvest of fruit  itself, but with the flourishing of the 
fruit trees.
According to the Poet Ovid, in his writings Pomona is a virginal wood nymph who rejected 
several suitors before she finally married Vertumnus. And the only reason that she would marry

Vertumnus was because he disguised himself as an old woman who offered Pomona advice on who she

should marry.  Unfortunately Vertumnus turned out to be quite a lusty fellow, and 
so the two of them are responsible for the prolific nature of apple trees. Even though 
Pomona does not often appear in mythology she is depicted quite often in many of the great 
artist of that of Rubens and Rembrandt and quite a number of sculptures who typically represent her

Rembrandt Painting

as a lovely maiden with a armful of fruit.

Rembrandt Painting

I thought I would talk a bit about the poet Ovid who was a Roman whose writings seemed to influence and
understand the goddess Pomona. 
Publius Ovidius Naso - was his full name, but he was mostly known as Ovid the poet in Rome.

Ovid the Poet 

Born on March 20, 43 B.C in Sulmo [modern Sulmona Italy]. To an equestrian family. His father took him and his one -year old er brother to Rome to study so that they might become public speakers and politicians.
Yet, it seemed that the brothers had other ideas then what their father choose for them. 
Instead of following the father dream, they went their own path as most children do. Even back in the 
ancient times children were just as they are now in the 21th century. 
So Ovid made good use of what he'd learned in the city of Rome, but he put his rhetorical 
education to work in his poetic writing.  Ovid wrote his Metamorphoses in the epic 
meter of dactyllic hexameters. So if you don't understand what this means it was the 
time of when he told his stories about the transformations of mostly humans and nymphs into
animals, plants and many other things. At the time Ovid, was kinda way ahead of his time
if you kinda get what I am trying to say. And he mostly loved to write about 
Pomona.
It was said that the the Roman Goddess Pomona was an honored as the spirit of 
fresh fruit, mainly the Apples and apple trees. And according to the Poet Ovid, she was most 
happiest spending her days nurturing her orchards of apple trees.
A little bit more about her Husband that she was trick into marry. 
Her consort was that of Vertumnus, the God of the Garden and the Field produce. He

represents the year in its guise as a shape-shifter and personifies the change of seasons. The change of 
seasons is a symbolized in the myth of Vertumus and Pomona as he changes into different forms in 
order to gain her affection.. 
In my opinion he probably had to this for all eternity with the 
beautiful Pomona for the trickery that he did to get her to agree to marry him. 
But that's just my own opinion...
As I come to the ended part of my post on the beautiful Pomona, there are 
a few more things about this goddess/Nymph that I would like to included. 
For one - Pomona was a Goddess of the Harvest. And her festival  was celebrated
throughout Greece in Autumn. 
There are some that believe that several of our modern day holiday harvest customs, 
are remants of Pomona old Roman feasts. In the classical Rome times, Pomona was 
worshipped with a special altar set up in a grove of fruit trees called a Pomonai, 
which had been painted outside the gates of Rome and dedicated to Pomona. 
I thought I would end this post with another of 
Willaim Morris  poems Enjoy!

'First see those ample melons-brindled o'er
With mingled green and brown is all the rind;
For they are ripe, and mealy at the core,
And saturate with the nectar of their kind.

And here their fellows of the marsh are set,
Covering their sweetness with a crumple skin;
Pomegranates next, flame-red without, and yet
With vegetable crystals stored within.

Then mark these brilliant oranges, of which 
A by-gone Poet fancifully said,
Their unplucked globes the corchard did enrich
Like Lolden lamps in a green nilht of shade.

With thise are lemons that are even more 
Golden than they, and which adorn our Rhyme,
As did rough pendants of barbaric ore
Some pillared temple of the olden time.

And here are peaches with their ruddy cheeks
And ripe transparency. Here nectarines bloom, 
All mottled as with discontinuous streaks.
And spread a fruity fragrance through the room.

With these are cherries mellow to the stone;
Into such ripeness bath the summer nursed them,
The velvet pressure of the tongue alone
Against the palate were enough to burst them.

Here too are plums, like edible rubies glowing,
the language of lush summer's Eden theme:
Even through the skin how temptingly keeps showing 
Their juicy comfort, a rich-clouded gleam!

Here too are figs, pears, apples [plucked in haste
Our summer treat judiciously to vary]
With apricots, so exquisite in taste,
And yellow as the breast of a canary. 

And luscious strawberries all faceted
With glittering lobes and all the lovelier seen
In contrast with the loquat's duller red,
And vulgar gooseberry's unlustrous green.

And lastly, bunches of rich blooded grapes
Whose vineyard bloom even yet about them clings.
Though ever in the handling it escapes 
Like the fine down upon a moth's bright wings.

Each kind is piled in order in the Basket, 
Which we might well imagine now to be
Transmuted into a great golden casket
Entreasuring Pomona's jewelry.

Charles Harpur I am the anciet Apple Queen,
As once I was so am I now. 
For evermore a hope unseen,
Betwixt the blossom and the bough. 
Ah, where's the river's hidden Gold!
And where the windy grave of Troy?
Yet come I as i came of old,
From out the heart of summer's joy." 
by William Morris

I hope you all Enjoyed Pomona as much
as I have my dears Friends & Followers 
I love you all! Your Wendy. 

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`"(✿◠‿◠)˙•٠•●c Celibate life♥´Magic Surrounds Us ƸӜƷ ♪♫♪♫♪❤❤
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Arianrhod, Moon Goddess of the Silver Wheel

Arianrhod Moon Goddess of the Silver Wheel-

In ancient Celtic times, the Celtic Myth Goddess has three major aspect within her; the maiden,
the mother and the crone. These three represent the three stages in the life of a
Celtic Goddess Women in ancient times. Blodeuwedd is the flower maiden, Arianrhod is the
mother and the Morrigan the crone.
These three aspects of these three ancient Celtic goddess, may have different names
live in different regions and regional legends, but they are the same.
For example; Morrigan also takes on the mother role many times and
Arianrhod is able to shapeshift into a large Owl and through the great Owl-eyes, she can see

even into the darkness of the human subconscious and soul.
The Owl symbolizes death and renewal, wisdom, moon magick and initiations.

Arianrhod is said to move with great strength and purpose through the night, her wings of comfort

and healing spread to give solace to those who seek her. 

  

Arianrhod is the Celtic Goddess of the Moon, the Stars and the Sky. In Wales, Arianrhod takes on other duties as well, when she became the Goddess of the Silver Wheel of the Year and the Goddess of the

Full Moon, Destiny, Fertility, Death and Reincarnation. What is also An Important Fact about this Goddess,

 Is that she is The Goddess of Feminine Power & Integral part of the Divine Feminine.

The Legend of Arianrhod was the most powerful of all the children born to the Great Goddess Don & her

Consort Beli. Arianrhod Goddess of the Moon was extremely beautiful, with very pale skin and was believed to have been both sister and wife to Gwydion and the mother of the twins; Llew, a Sun God and Dylan, a God of the Sea.

Arianrhod was also a Magician Goddess & considered by most a Maiden Goddess as well. Who lived in much of the same manner as the Greek Goddesses as Artemis and Athena; surrounded by only women.

In reality, Arianrhod actually lived a much wilder and freer life, frequently enjoying herself sexually and having a distinct preference for mermen. Arianrhods had two major symbols that were associated with her. These two symbols were that of the cauldron and the white sow. The cauldron was an important symbol of feminine power in the pre-Christian Pagan world - while her White sow indicated that she had a strong connection with the Underworld. It was also believed that she had a powerful connection with the sea, since it was known that she had a distinct preference for mermen rather that mortal men or Gods.

The Goddess Arianrhod and the meaning behind the Silver Wheel- 

The name that is given to the Goddess is Indication of her role

as the Goddess of the Full Moon & in her roles as the Mother in a typical 

Welsh Triple Goddess Trinity. 

Arianrhod Is also known as the Virgin White Goddess of Birth,

Initiation, Death , Rebirth and the Silver Wheel that Descends into the Sea.

Her palace is known as Caer of the Sky or the Castle of the Silver Wheel

although it may be better know as the Aurora Borealis.

Another part that the Goddess would be is ~

She was the Mistress of Caer Sidi of the Otherworld Tower of Initiation. 

What this meant? Well when people would died, they were taken to Caer Sidi  where 

they would spend the time that they had between their incarnations. 

When warriors would died in battles, it was the Goddess Arianrhod, who would 

gather  all their souls on the battle fields, put them aboard her ship known as 

the Oar Wheel and then transport them to Emania, which was also known as Moonland.

When they arrived at Moonland, that is when the Goddess Arianrhod initiated 

the Otherworld souls into their new lives at 

Caer Sidi.

But of course there is more to this story.... And this part of the 

story Is quite new to me... I hope you will keep an open mind for the 

Goddess Arianrhod as I continue the tale.
In the beginning of this post I did say that Arianrhod is the daughter of the Welsh Goddess Don
and the sister of Gwydion. Well this is the other part of The Goddess Arinarhod Tale
It all started with the Gwydion was being counselor to the King Math who could only remain
alive if his feet lay in the lap of a virgin at all times except when he led his armies into battle.
Which I find to be kinda of a crazy thing, but then again this is a tale/legend of the
Gods and Goddesses.. So as the Tale goes during such one battle the virgin who had
held King Math's feet was raped while he was in battle, so there for he need to replace her.
Kinda sad in a way that all the King Math was worried about was a replacement for the
young virgin and didn't care much about her welfare, but then again that was the times
and he was KING /God.  So Gwydion recommended his sister,
Arianrhod . Yes this is when we get to the other part of the Goddess Arianrhod story..
So as the legend tales Gwydion recommended his sister Arianrhod.
Although there was more to this of course. The King Math wanted the
Goddess Arianrhod to put her virginity to a test by asking her to step over his magick wand.
Arianrhod believing that she was surly a virgin stepped over the wand and as she did
gave birth to a boy child with yellow hair. The child cried out loudly for his mother Arianrhod,
but she of course was humiliated for the fact that she wasn't a virgin and had born not one but two
boys. She ran for the door, dropping yet another small object on to the ground in the process.  Its seems
that before anyone could catch a glimpse of what had fallen to the ground, Gwydion had picked it up and
wrapped it and hid it inside a chest.  The King Math then performed rithes for the yellow haired boy and
named him Dylan. Although in the tale Dylan immediately ran for the sea and received
the sea's nature and was never seen again.
Probably a merman. Like that of the many mermen his mother courted as a younger goddess.
It was quite a time later when Gwydion presented to Arianrhod with the object that was hidden
in the chest that faithful day- a second child that the Goddess didn't realized she had had. She
thought  the only one was the blonde hair boy that ran for the sea,
which they never saw again, but in her heart she knew where he was.
Yet the interesting part of this tale is that Arianrgod was outraged at the
"Evidence" of her humiliation at the hands of King Math and rejected the child.
Being a Celtic Goddess
She laid on the King Math three curses:
He shall have no name except one she gives him-
He shall bear no arms except ones she gives him-
He shall have no wife of the race that is now on the earth-
Now in the tale Gwydion was outraged by these curses and worked very hard to break them.
He disguised himself and the young boy as shoemakers and traveled to Caer Arianrhod.
So when Arianrhod the Goddess had her shoes fitted by the shoemakers, the young boy 
threw a stone at a bird and deftly hit it. Upon this, Arianrhod commented to the shoemakers 
young boy's skill. At that Gwydion revealed himself and the young boy and stated that she had 
just named him -Llew Law Gyffes, the Shining Skillful Hand. 
Well from the legend, this but Arianrhod into a firey rage and she stormed back to 
Caer Arianrhod swearing that the young boy would never bear arms or have a human wife.
This went on for most of the boys childhood- backandforth between Gwydion and Arianrhod, even though
all along the boy was Arianrhod's only son. Odd but in a weird way I could understand her. 
Well again Gwydion tricked Arianrhod into breaking her own curse. He had disguised himself and 
Llew as travelers again and sought refuge in Caer Arianrhod. 
While the two were there Gwydion caused an illusion showing a powerful armada of ships 
advancing upon Caer Arianrhod. 
Making ready for battle in Caer Arianrhod, the Goddess Arianrhod threw open her 
armory and armed her retainers. Gwydion suggested to Arianrhod that she give arms to him and Llew
[who were still in their disguise] and they would fight at the defense of the castle. Since Arianrhod 
thought her castle was in terrible peril, she readily agreed and thereby, unwittingly, granted arms to her son, 
breaking the second curse. Of course Gwydion then revealed themselves to Arianrhod and told her that 
she may as well take the arms back from her son, as there really was not battle to be fought. He then told her that it was all an illusion that he created in order for her to take off the curse of the boy. 
Enraged at being tricked a second time, Arianrhod took comfort in her third and final curse- 
That Llew would have no human wife, but Gwydion still upset with the cruelty that Arianrhod was 
showing toward her son, vowed to break this final curse.
So What Gwydion did to break the final curse, he need a little help this time. He decided 
to go to the King Math and explain Llew plight. 
And of course the King Math helped the young man Llew.
This is how they did it. 
Combining both their magic they created a women made of flowers, Blodeuwedd, to be
wife to Llew and that broke Arianrhod's third Curse.
Now your all wondering what happened to the Goddess Arianrhod Humm! 
Well, humiliated by King Math and Gwydion, thwarted by her own son, forsaken by her brother.
Arianrhod reteated to her Castle Caer Arianrhod.
Here she later drowned when the sea reclaimed the land.
I am sure there are many other versions of the Goddess but I found this one 
interesting. I hope you Enjoyed this tale and legend 

LOVE YOU ALLL!!! YOUR WENDY!

¸¸.☆♥(◡‿◡)♥✫¨´`'*°☆.❥•♪♫♥. (: ♥(◡‿◡)♥i
`"(✿◠‿◠)˙•٠•●c Celibate life♥´Magic Surrounds Us ƸӜƷ ♪♫♪♫♪❤❤
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