Weather - If St. Margaret's Day be dry, God will give us a fine autumn.
Farming and Gardening – Start harvesting on St.
Margaret’s Day.
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“At Antioch, Saint Margaret,
virgin and martyr” of which you can read more here.
To St. Margaret
"Hail, Saint! Whose form the
pencil yet portrays,
Calling our minds to
hallowed times of old,
When pastors grave, to guard
their wandering fold,
From prowling Wolf that on
meek virtue preys,
Gathered their flocks on
holy ground to graze,
By fountains pure, where
sacred waters rolled.
And when at eve the vespers
bell had tolled,
Around their hopes the pen
of faith did raise,
Inspire me to exhort our
faltering race;
To strive with him thou,
martyred virgin, trod.
Then cheer thou with thy
form and tranquil face,
Christ’s sheep awaiting his
directing nod,
Who whylome [formerly] held on earth the heavenly
mace,
And brought them back to
their appeased God."
(This sonnet was published in 1820, and it is said that the unnamed author wrote
it upon viewing Raphael’s picture of Saint Margaret.)
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And Poppies a sanguine
mantle spread,
For the blood of the Dragon
St. Margaret shed.
On St. Margaret’s day,
Dragon’s Breath Chili would be appropriate. It has 26 different ingredients, not counting the French-fry
base, or the cracker-green onion-cheddar garnish, so it might be a bit
much. Make your own favorite
chili, and if it is on the mild side, call it “Dragon’s-Breath-After-A-Breath-Mint
Chili.”
“The Every-Day Book” (1838)
dedicates Virginian Dragon’s Head (Dracocephalus
Virginianum) to Saint Margaret.
Any of the Dragon’s Head family, like the one pictured here, would be a
pretty addition to your Mary Garden.
In my garden, I have the “little dragon”, Artemisia Dracunculus, aka Tarragon (don’t be fooled by the little
dragon name. It is a very strong herb, and a little goes a long way). Nearby is a patch of Daisies (Daisy
being a nickname of Margaret).
Tarragon is a perennial
plant, and once established grows forever (or close enough). I use this everywhere – sprinkled on
roast chicken (before it goes into the oven), on baked fish (after it comes out
of the oven), in mayonnaise, and just a touch on salads. It is so good.
One of the things I make
from my herbal harvest is TARRAGON
VINEGAR, used especially in the recipe for Green
Goddess Dressing. Anchovies and
Tarragon! Heavenly days!
You will need approximately
2 cups (1 pint) of tarragon leaves.
If you need to wash them, do so very gently in a basin of cool
water. Pat dry, and then air dry thoroughly.
Cut 1 clove of garlic in
half. Heat 2 to 3 cups of white wine
vinegar to just below boiling.
Crush the tarragon leaves
lightly between your hands to release the oils and put them in a bowl (use a
bowl that you won’t need for a while).
Add the heated vinegar, the garlic, and two whole cloves. Cover the bowl and allow it to stand
for 24 hours. Take out the garlic,
put the cover back on, and let it stand for 14 days. Yep, two weeks.
When time is up, strain the
mixture until all the herbal residue is gone and the vinegar is clear. I use paper filters, but cheesecloth
also works. Put a sprig (or
several) of tarragon in the sterilized vinegar bottle and pour in the strained
vinegar. Cork it tightly.
Another recipe says to pack
the leaves into a quart jar, and pour unheated vinegar over them to within 1”
from the top. Use a wooden spoon
to bruise the leaves and release the oils. Cover the
opening with plastic wrap, then screw on the jar lid. Label it if you need to; store it in a cool, dark place for
4 to 6 weeks. Proceed as
above to strain and bottle the resultant nectar.
This works with other herbs
as well.
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Artwork:
Raphael, c1518. Saint
Margaret of Antioch. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Swiped from Wikipedia. I don’t know if this is the Raphael St. Margaret that inspired the poem, but
I prefer it to the one in the Louvre.
Dracocephalum ruyschiana,
swiped from Wikipedia.
"Death of Saint Margaret" from Pictorial Lives of the Saints by John Gilmary Shea (1889)
“Saint Margaret”, woodcut, c.1489,
from The Golden Legend.
