Bamboo
family Poaceae
tribe Bambuseae
-woody perennial evergreen
symbolic of: adaptability, strength, longevity, and endurance
Bamboo is green throughout the year.
Green is often symbolic of love, nature, balance, and harmony.
I have recently acquired a small bamboo plant which in turn inspired this mandala!
Nora 
Mandalas are found everywhere…even in my rock garden!
Nora
Bees have been very symbolic to me this past week! I love the way they work tirelessly to gather pollen for honey production! I found an interesting article on bee symbolism on Andrew Gough’s Arcadia website :
Photo Courtesy S. Hamilton, OGS
CBC NEWS IN DEPTH: May 21, 2008
It is a strange phenomenon: thousands of large, perfectly round “forest rings” dot the boreal landscape of northern Ontario.
From the air, these mysterious light-coloured rings of stunted tree growth are clearly visible, but on the ground, you could walk right through them without noticing them. They range in diameter from 30 metres to 2 kilometres, with the average ring measuring about 91 metres across. Over 2,000 of these forest rings have been documented, but scientists estimate the actual number is more than 8,000.
What causes these near-perfect circles in the forest?
Since they were discovered on aerial photos about 50 years ago, the rings have baffled biologists, geologists and foresters. Some explanations put a UFO or extraterrestrial spin on the phenomenon. Astronomers suggest the rings might be the result of meteor strikes. Prospectors wonder whether the formations signal diamond-bearing kimberlites, a type of igneous rock.
read more here:
CBC NEWS IN DEPTH - CLICK HERE
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“Symbolic of the Earth, of terrestrial space, of the human situation, of the external, natural limits of the ‘minimum’ awareness of totality, and, finally, of rational organization. It is equated with the square and the cube, and the cross representing the four seasons and the points of the compass. A great many material and spiritual forms are modelled after the quaternary. It is the number associated with tangible achievement and with the Elements. In mystic thought , it represents the tetramorphs.”
from J.E. Cirlot - A Dictionary of Symbols. 1962