Rose Sugar Navettes: Honoring Mary Magdalene

I’m sharing this recipe for Rose Sugar Navettes (little boats) in honor of the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene on July 22nd. Today these were eaten across Provence, as they have been for several centuries, to commemorate the arrival of the “Three Marys” at Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer (after the crucifixion) in a divinely guided, rudderless boat. While they are traditionally scented with orange blossom water, I’ve substituted rose water in homage to the Magdalene’s secret flower, not to mention the crunchy sugar topping made with fresh rose petals! Positively redolent with a fragrance so divine, it’s no wonder the rose was the sacred flower of goddesses around the world. That’s the beauty of these simple, rustic cakes; they are suitable for any celebration honoring the divine feminine, whether Christian or pagan.

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The Ultimate Guide to Japanese Barberry: Identification, Medicinal Virtues, Uses, and How to Host a Barberry Pull and Wild Medicine Making Event

Dana O’Driscoll

Lately, I’ve been exploring how to build relationships with all plants in the ecosystem, including opportunistic (invasive) species and in and in re-orienting our view away from just a human-centric one and re-centering nature. Just like anything else in nature, opportunistic plants have much to offer us, and learning to honor them, their uses, their medicine, and how to work with them is an important part of aligning with our local ecosystem. In today’s post, I want to do a deep dive into one such common opportunistic species throughout Eastern North America – Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii)–and create a comprehensive guide. First, I will share a story of an event I recently hosted in collaboration with two organizations to help remove and educate the public on Japanese Barberry and European Barberry (two opportunistic species listed on Pennsylvania’s Invasive Species list). I’ve had multiple readers ask for how to do this and to share resources to organize.Then, I will will offer resources for this specific plant in terms of identification, harvest, processing, and medicine making.

I have intentionally made this guide very comprehensive with the goal of making this a primer for people who want to offer a similar kind of event. You have my permission to reproduce and adapt parts or all of this post and the additional PDFs and photos to help teach about barberry and the medicine of the plant.

Can You Help Me Find Old-Growth?

Greetings,

I’d like to share one update and ask you a question.

Update:

For the past 7 months, I’ve been busy creating a brand-new online course on old-growth forest ecology. During this time, I’ve been visiting different old-growth forests and documenting their trees, ecological indicators, geological influences, relationships, and stories.

It’s coming together nicely, but I’d like to ask you for your help.

Question:

If you’re familiar with old-growth forests in western North America, can you offer any recommendations on places to visit?

Up until this point, I’ve been documenting eastern North American old-growth forests. In September of this year, I’ll be spending a few weeks in northern California and Oregon. I may also consider visiting the state of Washington.

If you’ve visited any old-growth forests in western North America, I’d appreciate your recommendations! Do you have any favorites? Are there any “must-see” forests? Can you point me in the direction of notable trees? Is there any other advice you can share? I’ve done quite a bit of research on my own, but I would still love to hear your thoughts.

You can simply reply to this email to reach me.

Thank you for your help! I really appreciate it.

—Adam Haritan

Your Spiritual Practice is Crucial Right Now

By Krista Mitchell

I know the energy of the collective right now is heavy. Intense. The increased solar and geomagnetic activity is serving to amplify this (it’s also serving to evolve us, but I’ll get into that topic at another time).
We cannot avoid being emotionally impacted by the collective because we are a part of it.
But we don’t have to suffer in darkness, either.
When we’re in fear we feel more disconnected from Source, our intuition, ourselves, and each other, and we can find it hard to cope, function, thrive, or navigate our lives in a way that is beneficial.
It can also make it challenging to be of service to others when we’re needed – trust me, I know this firsthand!
For my part, I’ve come to a place where I feel that as long as I do my daily practice, I’ll be ok.
I’d like that to be true for you, too.

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Is Black Walnut Killing Your Plants

“Black walnut kills plants.”

I first heard this statement many years ago. Occasionally, I still hear some version of this claim: Black walnut engages in warfare by releasing a chemical into the soil. This chemical kills or inhibits the growth of plants.

But is this entirely true? Does black walnut actually kill plants?

Some people say yes. Other people say no.

In a brand-new video, I share several key findings from scientific studies and personal observations that shed some light on this controversial topic.

You can watch the video here.