Flower gazing

February 9, 2009 - 5:08 PM by Jessica

the nectarine tree in our yard

I’m going into my Martha Stewart mode for Tu B’Shvat — the Jewish festival of the trees and all green things — which falls today, Monday, by working on my garden, which is blooming right now with cyclamen, tulips and my lone nectarine tree.

As a North American by birth, I’m used to less exciting flowers in the wintertime. But in Israel, winter is the time for what I think of as spring flowers, including yellow daffodils, tulips of all shades, deep purple and pink anemones; all the colorful, more wildlike flowers that can also be found all over Israel’s forests, parks and gardens. In fact, it’s not an unusual event for folks in these parts to pack up a picnic on a Friday and go searching for winter flowers, in parts near and far, and particularly during the Tu B’shvat period. A favorite spot for us is Lupine Hill, just outside Jerusalem, where a lone hill is covered with the purple blooms.

So in honor of Tu B’shvat, we’re going to forgo the usual eating of dried fruit, and eat flowers instead, on our salmon. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

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