Building Soil Fertility with Fall Gardening at the Equinox

Leaves - nutrients AND enjoyment! Leaves – nutrients AND enjoyment!

In the druid wheel of the year, we have three “harvest” festivals. Lughnasadh, the first harvest. So much of the garden produce starts to be ready at this time–and also at this time, the garden is still at its peak, but quickly waning. In the weeks after , our pumpkin patch died back with beautiful orange pumpkins and said “ok, I’m done for the year!” Then we have the Fall Equinox, where things are continuing to be harvesting, but many of the plants are in serious decline. By Samhain, everything is dead, the hard frosts have come and the land goes to sleep. It seems then, on the surface, that what we should be doing in the fall is primarily harvesting and sitting on our laurels and watching fall and winter come.

However, as a gardener and homesteader, my busiest time, by far, is the…

View original post 2,163 more words

Crabapple & Rosemary Hand Pies: Ancestral Offerings for Mabon — Gather Victoria

A couple of years ago, completely hidden in dark thicket of trees, I discovered a beautiful gnarled Crabapple – gleaming with clusters of hundreds & hundreds of rosy, autumn fruits. I was thrilled! I love crisp truly tart apples (which are getting harder to find) so the Crabapple fits the bill perfectly. Crabapples are the…

via Crabapple & Rosemary Hand Pies: Ancestral Offerings for Mabon — Gather Victoria

BACOPA MONNIERA: Brain Health and Nervous System Restorer

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

The Bacopa monniera herb, also known as Brahmi, has been used as a traditional Ayurvedic treatment for mental issues, epilepsy, and asthma. In fact, its documented medicinal uses can be traced back to the 6th century A.D.

A classic brain and nerve tonic, Bacopa is a medicinal herb that has been used effectively for several thousand years as a brain and nervous system restorer. The herb is known to increase mental clarity and promote improved memory and intelligence. It also assists in heightening mental acuity and supports the physiological processes involved in relaxation. In other words, it can keep you feeling relaxed while also boosting mental clarity, your focus, and mood. In fact, Bacopa is thought to help nourish neurons as it restores depleted synaptic activity.

Bacopa Monniera for Improved Memory

A 2006 double-blind, randomized study published in the Indian Journal of Psychiatry showed that the control group taking 125…

View original post 495 more words

First Full Moon of Autumn 2018

Autumn Equinox Ritual Doll

Full Moon in Aries ~ Challenges to Moving Forward and What to Do

Dear all,

This Full Moon is going to be challenging. But before we go on, just a couple of quick notes:

Continue reading “Full Moon in Aries ~ Challenges to Moving Forward and What to Do” →

Have You Ever Eaten Milk Cap Mushrooms?

Greetings!

I’d like to tell you about wild mushrooms that ooze latex.

Known as “milk cap mushrooms,” these fungi may not seem worthy of anyone’s appetite, though they are certainly a group worth learning!

Milk cap mushrooms form important associations with various trees, and the value of these mushrooms to wildlife (specifically to animals and insects) is high. Additionally, many milk cap mushrooms have been shown to be sources of naturally occurring rubber.

Perhaps the most exciting feature of milk cap mushrooms (at least from the mycophagist’s perspective) is that some of them are edible… and quite delicious! Featured in this new video is a milk cap mushroom that perhaps you’ve been overlooking all these years. If you’re interested in adding a new species to your list, check it out!

Mushrooms grow on all kinds of substrates, including trees, leaves, insects, soil… and hickory husks! This time of year, a yellowish-orange mushroom can be seen fruiting from hickory and walnut debris. Have you seen it? Check out this recent Instagram post to learn more!

Click to view post

Thanks for reading and watching, and as always, thank you for your support!

-Adam Haritan

The Golden Ecliptic, Pluto conjuncts her own South Node

September Herb of the Month; Annatto

Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Annatto, Bixa Orellana

• An orange-red dye or colorant, flavoring for food and healing agent derived from the seeds of
the achiote tree, an evergreen native to tropic and subtropic zones of the Americas
• Spiny red fruits contain the seeds and the reddish pericarp that surround the seed contains
the annatto or color
• Foods colored with the annatto pigment range from yellow to deep orange and include
chorizo sausage, cheese (like cheddar and American), smoked fish, popcorn, oil, butter,
margarine, rice as well as processed products like snacks and breakfast cereals
• Historically used to create a face or body paint by rainforest tribes and natives of the
Caribbean; Applying the paint lips dubbed achiote tree the lipstick tree; annatto paint was
also used as a sunscreen, bug repellent, food, and medicine
• Aztecs enhanced the color of hot chocolate with annatto
• Commonly used in Mexican cooking…

View original post 608 more words

Reachout Worldwide ~ Hurricane Florence Relief

Hurricane Florence Response.

Reach Out WorldWide is on the ground in Wilmington, North Carolina working around the clock to provide rescue and clear access ways in the city that has now been “cut off” due to damage and flooding from Hurricane Florence. The damage in North Carolina is severe and the need for help is overwhelming. Immediate needs are still rescue, shelter, food, water, and road clearing.

Florence continues to crawl across the Carolinas dumping record-breaking rainfall across the states. Flash flood and tornado warnings are in affect. Nearly 1 million homes and businesses have lost power so far. ROWW is working directly with the Brunswick Sheriff’s Department and we continue to coordinate closely with NVOAD partners.

As water levels drop, we will move in a larger team to begin with the post-disaster clean up efforts. Our Stage 2 primary efforts will be chainsaw, debris removal, and muck and gut. We will be calling upon volunteers to join our team. Please email responders@roww.org if you are interested in volunteering. Unable to donate your time? You can still make a direct impact by donating to this cause at donate.roww.org/hurricaneflorence!

Your involvement is critical to our success and helping as many as possible. Thank you for your help.

Donate to Hurricane Florence Relief