It is clear that plants are generally much wiser than I am. Tansy proves this point. Somehow, early on in the life of my current landscape, tansy or Tanacetum vulgare, made its first appearance by the hedge in the front garden.\u00a0 I overlooked the plant when it sprouted, but by mid-summer of the first year, it couldn\u2019t hide itself, growing about four feet tall, with lush, ferny foliage.\u00a0 The flowers, clustered at the tops of the stalks, resembled tiny gold button mums, hence one of tansy\u2019s common names, \u201cgolden buttons\u201d.<\/p>\n
The yellow flowers looked as if they would work in an indoor arrangement, so I clipped one of the stalks. My nose wrinkled. The odor or fragrance\u2014depending on individual perception\u2014is sharp.\u00a0 Some people describe it as being like camphor, with or without an overtone of rosemary.\u00a0 I am in the camphor camp and tansy\u2019s aroma triggers mental images of unromantic substances like moth repellent and harsh soap.\u00a0 Needless to say, those items do not dance hand in hand with a bevy of pleasant associations.<\/p>\n
Still, if you combine the blooms with other, more fragrant species, the golden buttons make wonderful, long-lasting cut flowers.\u00a0 Eventually they dry and can stand on their own in everlasting arrangements as well.\u00a0 On balance, I decided that tansy was earning its keep in the garden that first year and therefore deserved a chance to return for a second season.<\/p>\n
Tansy must have certain sensibilities, because the plant took my non-interference as a sign of affection.\u00a0 The second season, I had a big healthy clump of tansy, with some stalks that were taller than the privet hedge behind them.\u00a0 The harvest of gold buttons was equally<\/p>\n
impressive and made for many great bouquets.<\/p>\n
Taking note of the plant\u2019s tendencies, I decided to cut it back hard after the flowering period ended.\u00a0 The tansy responded by coming back even stronger\u2014if a bit shorter–within a few weeks.\u00a0 There were no more flowers that season, but the plants produced a quantity of aromatic foliage.\u00a0 That growth spurt and subsequent expansion by way of creeping underground roots, was the beginning of a fraught relationship between the gardener and the tansy that has lasted until now.<\/p>\n
Over time, though, tansy has also softened me up.\u00a0 I have realized that it doesn\u2019t just exude a strong aroma, but sings an ancient song.\u00a0 It is native to temperate areas in Europe and Asia, including Great Britain, and has been used for food, medicine and as a dye source for millennia.\u00a0 The foliage has both insect repellent and preservative properties and was used in the preservation of meat prior to refrigeration.\u00a0 From ancient until late Victorian times, tansy leaves were also a feature of traditional external embalming techniques, linking the plant with both death and immortality.\u00a0 Ganymede, servant and cup bearer to Zeus, reputedly drank tansy juice and became immortal.\u00a0 Do not try that at home.<\/p>\n
Back in the Middle Ages, when just about everything smelled bad, tansy was held in high regard as a \u201cstrewing herb\u201d, strewn on floors and walkways to sweeten the air. It was especially prized for its ability to repel the ever-present flies.\u00a0 Because of its rather bitter taste, small amounts of tansy leaves were also chopped and baked into Lenten dishes to provide a bit of bite and a reminder of the bitter nature of that season.\u00a0 \u00a0Those Lenten dishes may have had other benefits as well, because tansy was also used medicinally to expel intestinal parasites.\u00a0 These days, tansy is little used, even by herbal medicine practitioners, because of the plant\u2019s toxicity when taken in anything but tiny quantities.<\/p>\n
Given tansy\u2019s vigorous nature, it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if it is still in demand as a dye plant.\u00a0 The golden button-like flowers produce a golden-orange color.<\/p>\n
In the garden, tansy is an empire builder, expanding quickly in sun to very light shade and overwhelming other, better-mannered plants.\u00a0 It does not seem to be fussy about soil and tolerates some drought.\u00a0 To keep it under control, cut back by one third in mid-spring to reduce the plants\u2019 height and increase flower production.\u00a0 Grub out unwanted sprouts the minute you see them and if you give the discards to unsuspecting friends or neighbors, warn them about tansy\u2019s legendary vigor.<\/p>\n
Grow tansy in an herb garden, well-tended perennial bed or as a companion plant in the vegetable garden.\u00a0 The plant\u2019s insect-repellant properties work, at least to some degree, on a host of agricultural and horticultural pests including ants and a variety of destructive beetles.\u00a0 Your squash, cucumbers, potato plants and roses will most likely thank you.<\/p>\n
If you don\u2019t know anyone who can provide you with surplus tansy, order the plant from Well-Sweep Herb Farm, 205 Mount Bethel Rd,\u00a0 Port Murray, NJ\u00a0 07865-4147, It is clear that plants are generally much wiser than I am. Tansy proves this point. Somehow, early on in the life of my current landscape, tansy or Tanacetum vulgare, made its first appearance by the hedge in the front garden.\u00a0 I overlooked the plant when it sprouted, but by mid-summer of the first year, … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,2,3],"tags":[1453,953,1455,1451,1454,222,1458,1457,1452,1450,1456],"class_list":["post-1928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fall","category-general-interest","category-spring","category-summer","tag-aromatic-leaves","tag-dried-flowers","tag-everlasting-flowers","tag-golden-buttons","tag-herbal-remedies","tag-herbs","tag-historic-plantsacetum-vulgar","tag-plant-defenses","tag-tanacetum-vulgare","tag-tansy","tag-vigorous-plants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1928"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1929,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928\/revisions\/1929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n(908) 852-5390; www.wellsweep.com<\/a>.\u00a0 Catalog $3.00.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"