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"This is the day upon which we are reminded of what we are on the other three hundred and sixty- four." ~ Mark Twain April 1 is crowned April Fool's day. If you are like me, you may have wondered where this all started. Well our old pal Google tells us it started in England in 1725 when English pranksters began popularizing the annual tradition by playing pranks on one another. Although it's not really a legal holiday, April Fool's Day is celebrated all around the word as a day filled with practical jokes and silliness. One of my favorite pranks that I played at work was to take an onion and make it like a caramel apple, it was hysterical to watch them bite into it… too mean? (Well, I also gave them a real caramel apple). After all laughter is great medicine — and it's the perfect antidote when times feel heavy or downright hard and so I would think it sounds like a much needed breather. And so I say, let's all enjoy some harmless fun. This is also the month of Easter. You probably already knew that Easter falls on a different date each year, but do you know why? Easter and the many church holidays related to it, such as Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, and Good Friday, are called moveable feasts, because they do not fall on a fixed date on the Gregorian calendar, which follows the cycle of the sun and the seasons. Instead these days follow a lunisolar calendar. March 22 is the earliest Easter can occur in any given year and April 25 is the latest. If the first full moon occurs on a Sunday, then Easter will be observed the following Sunday. This year Easter falls on April 4. Now on to my favorite topic, gardening. The experts tell us the most popular flowers in the month of April are: tulips, freesia, sweet peas, snap dragons, gardenias, roses, orchids, peonies, irises, corn flowers, forsythia, lisianthus, Delphinium, tweedia, and ranunculus. And for my fellow gardeners, here are eight tried and true flowers that will grow great in So Cal: lily of the Nile, Santa Barbara daisy, sea lavender, bears britches, matilija poppy, toyon (California holly), California fuchsia, and desert mallow. Wondering why I didn't mention the symbol of the season, the Easter lily? Well, these flowers don't really bloom in early spring. The ones being, sold, sad to say, were forced in a greenhouse. Whatever you do in April, just get out there and garden. As the old Chinese proverb pronounces, "If you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread and a lily." Until we meet again in the Main Clubhouse Ballroom, stay healthy, be safe and Happy Gardening. For membership contact: Sherry Case at (951) 533-3584 or Linda Powers at (951) 769-3101. For fruit harvesting contact Judy Garthwaite at (951) 797-3130. For general information contact: President, Pam Mikkelsen at (951) 797-3080. Garden Club 38 | SUN LAKES LIFESTYLES | APRIL 2021 |