Spring in our permaculture garden

My husband taking a break after building 10 garden boxes. 

Horseradish peaking out

Rhubarb peaking out

     Gardening can be made much easier by first studying your growing area. Now I consider myself more of a accidental gardener or maybe a more intuitive gardener if you will. I am not found of measuring soil moisture, nutrient content or ph level. I just don't think God meant for it to be that difficult to grow food.  I do however look at the area and become aware of what likes to grow in the soil naturally because this can tell you the same things all those tests can tell you without having to decipher the numbers. So how does this all apply to the kind of garden we are putting in.... a food forest hybrid garden? Well as I talked to the lady at our local ag center she was surprised by what we were doing. She asked why we wanted to do a permaculture garden, saying "that is unique." I explained that it just seemed natural to set-up a system of growing that the perennials, fruit bushes and fruit trees help each other to gain the nutrients they need and help to make them better able to fight off disease and insects. She had her doubts that I can produce enough food to do a small CSA.... so I take that as a challenge not just to prove her wrong and grow lots of food but also to educate others on the benefits all around to a food forest garden. More bees, butterflies, birds, no chemicals, flowers, less weeding, etc. 

So what is in the garden and what will go in the garden as the season progresses? 

    We put in 10 raised beds for annuals that don't need permanent planting, can be rotated through the years, need some trellising, and can be successionally planted. I didn't make them deeper because the soil underneath is really good. Using raised beds for annuals keeps the ground looser because your not walking in the bed and you don't need to buy a tiller. I also don't like using heavy equipment when I can use a hand tool or an animal to do the work for me. 

    The fencing is almost done. That is to keep my dogs and the large population of deer out of the main garden. There will be more trees and bushes outside the fence but they will be more deer and dog resistant. Some will be to give the wildlife something to share as well. Some plant/trees for outside the garden are elder berry, paw paw trees, redbud trees, wet area wildflowers for near our creek, nanking cherries, lavender bed, a perennial flower bed, hazelnut bushes(closer to the house), jerusalem artichokes, ground nuts, and in front of the house a small culinary herb garden. 

    Our soil is rich from being in the flood plane of the Schuylkill river. That sounds great but it makes for some challenges with plants that prefer poorer dryer soil like lavender and some Mediterranean herbs. We will be planting the lavender bed on a hill with good drainage, sand added and marble chips to help reflect the suns warm rays. We also picked 2 kinds that do well in our northern climate; Hidcote and Grosso. I will be using them for making herbal salves, lavender water, sachets, and bundles to sell. We won't be growing enough at this time to consider making our own essential oil.

    The plants and trees that were in the garden area have been pruned. The perennial bed that grows asparagus, horseradish, garlic and rhubarb has been cleaned up for spring. To that we will add Good King Henry a perennial spinach, Lovage(celery like), and more walking onions. In between the rows I will plant parsley to help with the health of all the plants. We may need to add more asparagus to the bed too. I will add purple asparagus to the empty spots. Around the perimeter we have 2 nectarines, 2 pears, a willow tree, and 2 hollies. We will add 4 apples trees, 2 crab apple trees, 2 peach, 1 apricot, 1 plum, clove currants, gooseberry, honey berries, raspberries and in one corner a three sister area(corn, squash and dry pole beans). Under fruit trees and berry bushes we will plant perennial herbs and plants. We ordered 75 alpine strawberries, assorted herbs like thyme, chives, borage, lemon balm, meadow mint, and comfrey. 

    There is some shade in the garden which I am hoping will provide us with some gourmet mushrooms too. Only time will tell what we will continue to grow. Also as the fruit trees grow and give more shade we will have to add a different set of plants to the mix. 

    Eventually in the actual forest we will plant ramps, goldenseal, wintergreen, ferns and some hardwood trees. They may not all take but we are going to try. 

So this may seem overwhelming to some but I challenge you to try a few edible perennials around your home. Maybe even a fruit tree and some berry bushes. It is fun to experiment and see what grows. 

Happy spring everyone! 

The Whole Foods Way

(time sensitive sale today and tomorrow- there is a wonderful whole foods living ebooks on sale with some great extras to get you started... I purchased it and am very happy with the goodies(salt and sour starter) and the books)

FYI- there are many links in this post so please hover over with your mouse to be able to see the highlighted items that you can click on for links.
    So as we wait for the calendar to clear a little to have a fall/winter potluck I will share some info here.  So my tips for making some great cold weather foods and remedies.
    First lets look at what is in season because when you are eating for nutrition with whole foods you want to be eating what is the best in season.
 Right now that is:
broccoli
brussels sprouts
cabbage
celery
cauliflower
winter greens-kale, collards, mizuna, arugula, lettuces, swiss chard, mache

Rutabaga, carrots, celeriac root(my new favorite veg) and red onion

cranberries
grapes
apples
pears
persimmons
pumpkin and winter squashes
beets
carrots
radish
parsnips, turnips, and rutabagas
citrus
sweet potatoes and potatoes
dried beans

Notice everything on the list except citrus can be grown here in our northeast climate. So if we look at this list and we are already whole foods eaters we can see what recipes would work for those ingredients. Also a note on nutrition- these are the foods we should be eating in this season that give us the nutrition we need for this time of year. I don't buy fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, or strawberries in winter. I do have some frozen/canned tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers(pickles) and strawberries(for smoothies) though, that were made when they were in season.

Some of my favorite recipes are:
Roasted vegetables( I have cut up carrots, beets, parsnips, cauliflower, broccoli, squash like Delicata, potatoes, sweet potatoes, baby turnips and brussels sprouts or any combination of the above, then mixed with a splash of walnut oil and some rosemary or parsley, roasted on stoneware or cookie sheet with an edge at 400 degrees for almost an hour, check after 45 minutes. You are looking for browned edges but not burnt)
Winter Squash or Pumpkin bisque- Roast squash and/or pumpkin in oven till tender and blend in a pot with immersion blender or in regular blender. Combine 2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth with pumpkin. Saute 1 chopped onion and 1/2c. celery in some butter till it is just starting to brown and add to broth mix. Add some chopped potatoes, sea salt, pepper, 1/2 t. thyme, and 1/2 t rosemary. Heat on medium till potatoes are done. Add 1 cup cream if you want a creamy traditional bisque. I have also served this with a dollop of sour cream sprinkled with pumpkin seeds. I have served this with a side salad and fresh bread with butter.
Apple-Walnut Salad with vinaigrette-here
Meat Pies like Shepherd's Pie(made with lamb), Cottage Pie(made with beef), Steak and Guinness Pie, Chicken Pie(I mix leftover roasted veggies with leftover meat and this homemade cream soup and top with my favorite pie crust), etc.

Soups/stews- White Chicken Chili, regular Chili, Beef Stew, Lamb Stew, Lentil Soup, Turkey Wild Rice(non-dairy), Italian Vegetable Soup, Chicken Noodle, Clam Chowder and Garden Chowder. 
    For soups and meat pies you NEED a good homemade broth. My favorite chicken one is here and beef one here. I make these up ahead of time. Each recipe I make about 4 quarts and freeze them in wide mouth mason jars... leave head room. Then I thaw in fridge over night or on counter in the morning. NEVER put in hot water because it may break the glass.

Chicken broth

Lentil Stew

    Some recipes I want to try-
Raw Carrot Beet Salad-here
Cheesy Stuffed Pumpkin-here

    Soups or meat pies served with a winter salad that contains pears or apples with a nut or seed make for a yummy lunch or dinner. The soups are warm and filling and the salads give us that crunch we miss of summer but with winter fruits. So my challenge to you is look at what is in season only and add that to your soups, stew and salads. It is cheaper in season and loaded with more nutrition. When you can find it local it hasn't traveled as far and it is usually picked ripe making it better for you and tastes better.
    So how do I get my kids to eat all this.... get them involved in the kitchen, have them taste individual ingredients, don't give them bad choices and find great recipes. I don't buy a lot of processed foods so there is no choice in our house. Yes, this did take a while to transition but we learned real quick what simple things to have on hand. We keep a stock of carrots to munch, popcorn, homemade trail mix or Lara bars(homemade), raw cheese, Real sour dough bread(with homemade jam, fresh ground peanut butter, almond butter or butter), naturally brined olives, apple sauce, fruit, nuts and dried fruit.
    We typically eat one or two heavy meat meals like a roast or roast chicken in a week. Then the small amount I have left over(key is YOU fill their plates and put the rest away) gets put into soup or meat pie. The roasted meat tastes wonderful in these other meals. A tip-you can give soups and stews added flavor by sauteing onions, garlic, and celery in some butter till slightly browned before adding them. If we ate more like peasants with meat being a flavoring we would be healthier for it.
    Now I know this gets a bit more challenging if you have very active kids, really picky eaters or are in the transition stages(remember processed foods makes us more hungry because we are not getting the nutrition we need.) As a christian I tell my kids that we are eating to LIVE not living to EAT and this in the temple so lets take care of it. That doesn't mean we don't make healthy treats like the Best Brownies ever or a homemade fruit pie with some local ice cream but these are once a week not everyday.

    Some sites that you might find fun and inspiring:
The Stone Soup- love the simple easy recipes with a short ingredient list
Honest Fare- again simple recipes with seasonal ingredients... so yummy
Smitten Kitchen- again real ingredients with yummy food
Nourishing Days- real food and gluten free
Gnowfglins- lots of info

I hope this helps you and your family on this whole foods way of eating. One step at a time and a focus of better nutrition is all you need. God bless.

Rhythm of a homemaker

 
 Sometimes as spiritual creatures on this human journey we tend to forget that the world around us though it seems like chaos has a pattern to it; a rhythm if you will. Sometimes in our daily lives we can feel it and it comforts us and other times the rhythm is not seen because it is to far away(like a weekly rhythm instead of daily.) I think that puts us off balance a bit. I do much better when the day flows. Now you may say how boring but trust me when I tell you I like to be spontaneous and would have done just fine as a traveling gypsy. Just as in nature the day unfolds itself for you if you are watching. As my husband says we have a short list of things that need to get done by a certain time but really many days the work that needs to be done reveals itself.
    Why do we want rhythm?
I love reading about monks and their daily practices... very ritual and simple. When we start to make good habits they are a positive daily ritual. They become part of who we are, where God has us planted at this moment in this season. If we have good habits they nourish us just like when He tells us to hide His word in our hearts. We have to read it over and over in order to memorize it. I didn't realize this until we had moved. At our old home I had a organized system, habits, daily routines that were comforting. You don't realize how comforting they are until they are not there. My first week here I panicked because I felt like I was on vacation but would have no where to return to. It would have been easy if all I owned was in a backpack that I could take anywhere. All in my little world would stay the same while I lived in the world around me(I purposefully do this when we go camping... par down to my most important items to function). So when we moved to such a different lifestyle the seasons now mean so much more.... the day set itself up for me with how things unroll with the day. The feeding of animals, picking of nuts or fruit, our homeschool, feeding of my family, the sweeping of the kitchen floor daily, etc.
    How do we get this rhythm?
I think I really started to see the connections when I started to garden but it then really stuck when we started eating only in season. After a few years you feel the rhythm of seasons. Then as you put some of these treasures away for winter you start to feel the rhythm of the months. Then as we remove clutter from our lives to be present in the daily doings we feel the rhythm of the day. I don't often plan menus because the food tells me what I am cooking that week. I have simple recipes that can be modified with what ingredients are on hand(I will share them in a future post). Simplifying life comes naturally and not something you have to read about in a book or on a blog. Cleaning took some work for me to make that more of a habit but my chores started to fall on certain days of the week and I went with that.
    Why do we long for simplicity(rhythm)?
Because we ARE spiritual beings in these temporary human bodies. I have found that in season foods are not just comforting but also nourishing with the right nutrients that we need for that season and that climate in which we live. If you lived in a different climate you would have different in season food that would do the same. Example: in a PA summer we have a lot of heavy water fruits in the hottest months that help us replenish what we have lost in sweating. As the seasons change our bodies adjust... like feeling more of a sense of hibernating under a warm quilt in winter or staying up later to look at the stars and fireflies in summer. Now this rhythm is not to just make our day easier for us but it also builds memories. Somewhere along the way as a young person I started to long for something and didn't know why or what until I moved in with my grandparents. They knew the value of this rhythm. We created in different seasons, planted, harvested, cooked and preserved in their right times. After years the memories were such a part of me as I will never forget them. Picking peaches and apples with my grandfather and cooking seasonal meals with my grandmother. These memories did not happen with great fanfare or with a heavy price but became something I so looked forward to each year. Warm and comforting. As I listened to stories my grandparents told about how life was for my great-grandparents it occurred to me that they didn't have modern technology or lots of books but they were taught how to do most of what they did by their parents in their daily lives without much struggle in the learning. When I see woman who live almost effortlessly with homeschooling, cleaning, gardening, canning, sewing, etc. whatever it is they are doing most times it is because they were taught by their mother or grandmother. For us these days if we weren't brought up that way it becomes harder to make these daily things a habit until we have done them for years.
    What is rhythm?
I guess it seems funny to put this last but I wanted you to think about it along the way and then I would make the statement to sum it up. Rhythm is living deliberately feeding the habits that help us to accomplish the tasks that we have before us in this season of our lives. A comfort, a inner awareness of what comes next in the day. It is good for the soul, the memories made, the children, the day.
    You will have days when God is growing you and things will feel chaotic but I promise you that these days of rhythm will help you to weather them much better.

Deuteronomy 6:7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

Oh, I could go on here but I will leave you with one last thought for now.


An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy.
"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego." He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

Some sites I find fun and helpful:

rhythmofhome.com

www.soulemama.com