“Obtain a yield” is a basic tenet of the sustainable design system permaculture. Many moons ago I took a permaculture design course and incorporate some of those concepts into my backyard sanctuary. One idea is to design for ease of care. This includes focusing on plants that are perennial, disease resistant, and do well naturally … Read more
Flax to Fiber Experiment As some of you know, I became intrigued by the whole process of turning flax into fiber after reading The Golden Thread. Of course, I had to try it myself. This is an update on the project that began in January. In the spring, I put in a new 8 foot by … Read more
Flax to Fiber One of my many garden goals for the new year is attempting to create fiber from flax…fiber as in thread, string, or whatever I can manage. I was inspired to explore this idea after reading The Golden Thread, How Fabric Changed History by Clair St. Kasia Humans have been making fiber from flax … Read more
Everything Changes When I started gardening many moons ago, it was impossible to get organic produce at local stores. I also had a house full of children. Growing plants we could make meals with was a top priority. However, all of that has changed. Drifting Toward Easy My work schedule is hectic, there aren’t … Read more
It’s late August and my garden is a chaotic, wild, and beautiful “mess”. The pumpkin vines have twined up the apple tree with pumpkins resting on branches or in mid-air. The runner beans are preferring the support of tomatoes to the trellis, so beans appear to be growing out of the tomato plants. The cosmos, … Read more
Having grown up reading Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and other fantasy books, I’ve been immersed in the concept of deep magic. Most everyone knows the stories…the ring to rule them all was forged by deep magic, the stone table on which Aslan was sacrificed was built with deep magic. The magic that created these things always … Read more
Creating Winter Mandalas This moment and this moment and this next moment….that’s what we have. These moments make up our lives. And yet we seem to be wired to be anywhere but in this present moment. Certainly more than at any time in our history, the information on meditation and mindfulness is readily available. But … Read more
. Pattern Language Expands Possibilities What do forest gardens and peer run recovery centers have in common? • Both are innovative ideas • Both are phrases that help us envision new patterns and possibilities As I expand on each one and you’ll see the connections. On forest gardens Forest gardens are also known as food … Read more
The Power of Language Language shapes our perception of the world. Label a plant a medicinal herb or label it a weed and very different images appear in our minds. Label a person as someone in recovery or a person who is mentally ill and again, different images appear that open or shut doors to … Read more
A Season of Harvest As I write this post I am watching the chickadees hanging upside down on sunflower heads picking out the last seeds. The pumpkin vines and most of the rest of the garden plants are dying back. Although the sunchokes, zinnias and cosmos are putting on a last enthusiastic show. The angle … Read more
