Blooming chaste tree: perfect foil for agaves together with aloes

In our backyard, in that place is a beautiful tree that is visible from the dining room window in addition to from the sidewalk on the S side of the house. People invariably inquire what it is, in addition to when nosotros say them it’s a chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus), they teach a blank await on their face—either because they receive got never heard of it before, or they can’t quite figure out what chastity has to produce alongside it. I had no sentiment either so I did to a greater extent than or less research. I dearest what I constitute on Wikipedia:

In ancient times it was believed to endure an anaphrodisiac, thus the refer chaste tree. Pliny, inwards his Historia Naturalis, reports the role of stems in addition to leaves of this flora yesteryear women every bit bedding "to cool the oestrus of lust" during the fourth dimension of the Thesmophoria, when Athenian women left their husband's beds to rest ritually chaste. […] Chaucer, inwards "The Flower in addition to the Leaf," refers to it every bit an attribute of the chaste Diana, in addition to inwards the 16th century the English linguistic communication herbalist William Turner reports the same anaphrodisiac properties of the seed, both fried in addition to non fried. More recently, this flora has been called monk's pepper inwards the sentiment that it was used every bit anti-libido medicine yesteryear monks to assist their attempts to rest chaste. There are disputed accounts regarding its actual activeness on libido, alongside to a greater extent than or less claims that it is anaphrodisiac in addition to others that it is aphrodisiac. Because of the complex machinery of activeness it tin seat notice endure in all likelihood both, depending on concentration of the extract in addition to physiologic variables (see below).

H5N1 few years agone individual posted a banknote on our local Freecycle site looking for chaste-tree berries, in addition to she did come upward yesteryear in addition to collect to a greater extent than or less from our tree. I wonder what she was using them for?

We bought our chaste tree every bit a tiny flora inwards a four-inch pot, in addition to inwards the xv years it’s been inwards the the world it has grown into compact xv ft. tree that provides beautiful filtered shade.

Native to the Mediterranean in addition to hardy to zone 7, the chaste tree does superbly good inwards our climate in addition to deserves to endure grown more widely. It's at its most beautiful inwards mid- to late-June when it's covered alongside bloom spikes that deport a superficial resemblance to butterfly bush (Buddleja). Some chaste tree varieties receive got flowers that are violet, others are most white, only my favorite is the sort nosotros receive got alongside vibrant purplish bluish flowers.

During the day, the tree is abuzz alongside all kinds of bees, including large dark carpenter bees. I dearest ducking nether the branches, straightaway weighed downward yesteryear the blossoms, in addition to beingness surrounded yesteryear a symphony of bee sounds.

All the photos below were taken from the sidewalk along the S side of the house. I intend the chaste tree harmonizes perfectly alongside the 'Sonoran Emerald' palo verde (Parkisonsia 'Sonoran Emerald'.