Mary's Garden is a garden, filled with flowers, plants and trees named for Mary and Jesus. It is designed to be a place of beauty that reminds us of our Lord and Our Lady, to experience God's creation, and to invite prayer and contemplation.
You are an enclosed garden, my sister, my bride, an enclosed garden, a fountain sealed. Arise, north wind! Come, south wind! Blow upon my garden that its perfumes may spread abroad. Song of Solomon 4:12,16
During the Middle Ages, there were reminders of Mary, the Mother of God, in the flowers and herbs growing around them. Violets were symbols of her humility, lilies of her purity and roses of her glory, marigolds were Mary’s Gold, clematis was the Virgin’s Bower, lavender was Our Lady’s Drying Plant, petunias and purple blossoms of the blue flag iris. The Madonna lily was carried by the Angel Gabriel when he visited Mary to tell her God had chosen her to be the Mother of our Savior, bedstraw, holy hay and other herbs became radiant in the humble manger where Mary gave birth to Jesus and carnations and the Christmas rose bloomed on that holy night.
Devoted to Mary, people decorated her altars with flowers on her feast days. Poets and popes praised her in hymns. In the last century, people also honored Mary with flowers. May crownings were the tradition in Catholic schools during Mary’s month of May, and makeshift home altars bearing an image of Mary were decorated with the choicest home-grown blossoms
More than 30 flowers and herbs bear legends about Mary’s life. Many of the plants can be easily grown in your own Mary Garden, a garden dedicated to Mary and containing her image and plants associated with her by name or legend. They are found in Mary Gardens throughout the world. These gardens can take us on a virtual journey with Mary, in spirit and in our heart.
Lily of the Valley Convalleria majalis Mary’s Tears.
It was said that when Mary wept at the foot of the Cross, her tears fell to the ground and turned into the tiny fragrant blossoms of this early spring plant. In England it had the name “Our Lady’s Tears” because when viewed from a distance the white flowerets gave the appearance of teardrops falling. The lily of the valley was a symbol of the Virgin Mary because of its pure white flowers, sweet smell and humble appearance. It symbolized Mary’s Immaculate Conception and represented the purity of body and soul by which Mary found favor with God.
O Mary, we crown thee with blossoms today, Queen of the Heavens, Queen of the May. Make our hearts a garden of prayers for these little ones and their families.
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