Showing posts with label gardening. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gardening. Show all posts

Unplugging My Kid

⊆ Wednesday, May 27, 2009 by Donia | , , , . | ˜ 2 comments »

The lion cub leads a pretty unplugged life, as is...


When i came upon UnplugYourKid.com i thought what they do is fantastic. Here is the basic idea: Every week a theme is selected and you have full freedom to explore that idea creatively with your child. You take pictures of the process, progress, results, etc. and post them then link to the main website so others can see and enjoy. Here are some more details...


This week's theme is Dark. We are going to have a go next week with Petal.


There has been much jubilation since the iris and peonies started blooming so it should make for some really fun petal-ly projects.



The Treasure of Reconnecting

⊆ Friday, April 03, 2009 by Donia | , . | ˜ 0 comments »

Its so good to see dear friends after a long absence, no?

Dare i say it is a Healing Treasure? One that soothes the soul?

Today we awoke nourished and inspired because of said reunions...and because these fellows and fellinis are gracing us with their optimistic visages.

from here


Making Good on a Promise

⊆ Saturday, March 28, 2009 by Donia | , , , . | ˜ 0 comments »

Round about Christmas time (ok, it was actually on Christmas, there was no round-abouting about it) i gave my mom a present. Actually, it was a picture of a present that i intended to give her.


When my brother saw that she was receiving a postcard with a picture of said intended present, he groaned a little, recalling the year i presented all of the family with booklets of "i owe you" coupons to be redeemed at my discretion. I assured him that this was different. What our dear momma held in her hands would indeed manifest itself in the very near future...and now that time has come!!!

So, what was the picture of, you ask?

A Composter, of course!

Our family has been composting in more free-form kind of way until now. We have had bins that do not rotate, piles of compostables along the wooded edge of our property, and have contributed to more official compost piles of others.

I have been researching different compost bins - both ready-made and DIY. But it wasn't until a couple weeks ago that i had my composty "Aha" moment...

it came by way of this...

Do you remember me talking about this little gem of a volume as part of my wish-list from Acres USA? You can refresh your memory here...

Wishes do come true (music swells in the background)!!!! A few weeks ago our dear friend Cecilia gifted me this volume while expressing her love and admiration for the denizens of the ground beneath our feet (and houses, gardens, parking lots, etc.)

In reading Stewart's book, my own admiration for the wormy-sort grew tremendously. They are an extraordinary sort - the real movers, shakers, and sculptors of the planet. Feats quite extraordinary for a critter that is deaf, dumb, and blind.

The Earth Moved was surprisingly engaging. It drew me in and left me wondering about soil and what lies beneath all day. Stewart's enthusiasm and knowledge are contagious. This is true especially when she speaks of the worms she has at home. The ones she has come to know and love. The ones in her......................

WORM COMPOSTER! (of course i added red for dramatic effect. Red Wigglers are more often than not the resident of choice in ye ole' worm composter.)


The worm-composting world is pretty darn enormous. I am digging through slowly. But we are getting a worm composter. Hope my mom likes it. And soon these hands will be mine...


Horti-Sculpture

⊆ Monday, March 16, 2009 by Donia | , , , , . | ˜ 0 comments »

Just came across a course i would love to take...The Art Of Horticulture (at Cornell University).

Now i just have to get into Cornell.

Really, it looks like a fantastic course. and they get to do living horti-sculpture as a final project!

Simulation

Reality.



And check out their tasty reading list (they are just required to read 2):

Ackerman, Diane. 2001. Cultivating Delight: A Natural History of My Garden. NY: HarperCollins. (This lady keeps on showing up in my life! see Mad Book Dash!)

Druse, Ken. 2003. The Passion for Gardening: Inspiration for a Lifetime. NY: Clarkson
Potter/Publishers.

Kingsolver, Barbara. 2007. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life. NY: HarperCollins.

Masumoto, David Mas. 1995. Epitaph for a Peach: Four Seasons on my Family Farm. Harper San Francisco.

Mitchell, Henry. 1981, 1999. The Essential Earthman. NY: Houghton Mifflin.

Orlean, Susan. 1998. The Orchid Thief. NY: Ballantine.

Pollan, Michael. 2001. Botany of Desire. NY: Random House.

Stewart, Amy. 2007. Flower Confidential. Chapel Hill: Algonquin Books.


Hearing Eco Agriculture's Voice

⊆ Sunday, February 01, 2009 by Donia | , , , , . | ˜ 0 comments »

Upon reaching home after a great yoga class Thursday (much gratitude to my old friend Jonathon for inspiring my attendance), i found an envelope on the bed. It was my Acres USA free sample magazine and catalog! That a request for more info had been made a month and a half ago had slipped into the recesses of my busy mind.

How exciting! I have always wanted to know the ins and outs of organic seed production and how to make organic hay! Actually, that is true...i am not always aware of the desire, but it is there.

So far, i have only skimmed the magazine. The catalog was more magnetic straight away (there are several books on biomagnetism, btw). While putting the little lion to bed titles and descriptions of green and esoteric books were poured over. (Full Disclosure: Books and their consumption are a weakness of mine. There are shelves and shelves and shelves of them in our abode. Many have been great friends.)

Here are a few titles that i would love to check out (or if anyone is trying to figure out what the heck to get me for any of my 364 un-birthdays...):

Roots Demystified by Robert Kourik (illustrated root systems and wit! cant' beat that!)

Growing Green by Jenny Hall and Iain Tolhurst (talks about animal by-product-free organic farming)

The Earth Moved by Amy Stewart (all about the extraordinary wrigglers that are earthworms)

How to Grow Fresh Air by Dr. B.C. Wolverton (highlights 50 plants for their abilities to provide maximum oxygen, to purify toxins, and how green your thumb has to be to grow them)

Carrots Love Tomatoes (and the 2nd edition, Roses Love Garlic) by Louise Riotte (A gossip book for the plant world. All about who likes who, who doesn't like who, and how you can harness plants social preferences to maximize your garden's yield.)

Growing 101 Herbs that Heal by Tammi Hurtung (advice on how to cultivate, care for, and harvest 101 useful and healing herbs)

The Secret Teachings of Plants by Stephan Harrod Buhner (how to become more in tune with the healing aspects of plants. Inspired by indigenous and ancient people and cultures.)

Genetic Roulette by Jeffery Smith (Investigates and shatters the claim that genetically modified foods are safe.)

Dung Beetles by Charles Walters (The compelling tale of this strange bug.)

Secrets of the Soil by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird (Highly recommended to me by a friend. Discusses creative techniques being used to practice non-toxic agriculture.)

So there it is, a small portion of my ambitious wish reading list.