Saugus Gardens in the Winter

Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable

By Laura Eisener

When it’s Valentine’s Day, suddenly you see hearts all over town! Some of them were there all along, and others are decorations for the holiday, and flowery sentiments abound. While admiring the snow in Saugus Center this weekend, the window display of Blown Away Hair Boutique was just one of the places adorned with hearts in the window for the holiday. Year round, there are plenty of hearts near the “Entering Saugus” sign on our border with Lynn. Some of these signs say “Saugus – A Purple Heart Community” and others say “Please Drive Slowly – We ♥ Our Children.” Pine Tops Road in Breakheart Reservation is a 2-mile loop that has been designated a “Heart Healthy” trail and is labeled that way on the trail map.

If you look at many of the fences and porch railings, you will find full or partial heart shapes made of wrought iron – popular patterns with a long and interesting history. It makes for a great “scavenger hunt,” although the only prize is fun and exercise to see how many you can find. Some of the most popular wrought iron patterns take the shape of a curvy S, which when arranged in mirror image side by side creates a sort of heart shape with extra flourishes. This heart-shaped pattern may have originated as a popular fabric symbol first used on fabric for King Adinkra of Ghana. While the shape does resemble a heart, it is known as asoka – usually translated as “Go Back and Get It” or “Learn from the Past” – and another version of it is a bird looking back over its shoulder. Another shape, which is more clearly an open heart without the flourishes, does mean love, tolerance and understanding. Originally these symbols were patterns printed on fabric for royalty in west Africa, but some, especially the asoka, found their way into ironwork around the world. They were especially popular on railings and balconies in Cajun neighborhoods around New Orleans. In the 1960s they were incorporated into many machine-made railings, fences and other architectural features. This pattern, and others derived from it, can be seen worldwide now.

Bird feeding month continues to be in full swing this week, and our feathered friends can use a bit of assistance with the snow covering the ground. Big windows are wonderful for letting in light and for birdwatching, but they can be dangerous for birds. Especially with bird feeders close to the house, the birds may not distinguish between a large paned window and an open space, and may try to fly through it. This can happen at any time of year, Window decals or other obstructions may discourage them from trying to fly through. Removable and reusable window decorations like the hearts on the glass above can be a solution.

Lovers of snow were certainly not disappointed this week. The snowstorm Saturday night meant many people were out shoveling on Sunday, and plows and sanders could be seen around town throughout the weekend. Wednesday, February 12 was the full snow moon. It certainly shone down on an appropriately wintry landscape and caused the icicles on the eaves to sparkle.

Ṭu bi-Shevaṭ, sometimes called Jewish Arbor Day or the New Year for Trees, started on the evening of the 12th and ended at sundown on the 13th. In Israel, this day marks the start of the agricultural season for calculating the quantity of harvest for each year and is also traditionally a day for planting trees and appreciating nature. This holiday floats around between January and February because the calendar is based on a combination of solar and lunar cues. Of course, in New England, the ground is frozen so February is still a few months away from tree planting time.

This Monday, Feb. 17 is the 210th anniversary of Saugus becoming a town separate from Lynn and is also the federal holiday Presidents’ Day, which is celebrated on the third Monday in February. For the 200th anniversary in 2015, a commemorative American elm (Ulmus americana) was planted at Saugus Iron Works on Arbor Day, near to the blacksmith shop on the nature trail side of the river. It is amazing to see how much that tree has grown in a decade!

  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.