Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘community’ Category

WILDCRAFTING #2: MUGWORT, (bonus plant Wormwood), YARROW AND RED CLOVER. And a little conversation with God and St. Francis on Lawns.

Posted in community, diy, health & beauty, nature, organic, organic gardening, plant identification, tagged , , , , on August 17, 2010| 6 Comments »

Find it-MUGWORT-ID it

Mugwort-Artemisia vulgaris

Know it

http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/mugwor61.html

I have to tell you Mugwort and Wormwood are very close. They are related and they are both good herbs to wildcraft. So here is a pic and description of Wormwood. Two for the price of one.

Find it-WORMWOOD-ID it

Wormwood-Artemisia absinthium

Know it

http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/w/wormwo37.html

The leaves on the wormwood are more deeply lobed and more of a silvery color than the mugwort. Wormwood is a great find and has quite a history. It is one of those biblical herbs as is fennel and yarrow.

Here’s the bible references

http://www.herbsociety-stu.org/bible_herbs.htm

Find it-Yarrow-ID it

Yarrow-Achillea millefolium

Know it

http://www.altnature.com/gallery/yarrow.htm

Yarrow comes in pink, white and yellow.  A reader was nice enough to point out that the white yarrow and not the yellow as I had originally posted, is the native.  Good to be able to set the record straight.  Thanks Judith.

Native yarrow is very prolific and reseeds itself almost desperately which is good because there is so much you can do with it. I just learned you can take one leaf, chop it up and put it on your compost pile to speed up decomposition. Works so well with other herbs too.

Find it-Red Clover-ID it

Red Clover-Trifolium pratense

Know it

http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-red-clover.html

You can find red clover everywhere. Red is really pink and there is a white clover but the medicinal properties are different. It also reseeds itself and is, as is with all clovers, great for the soil. All the herbs I have mentioned here that are so beneficial and part of the wildcrafting art are regarded as weeds by the makers and producers of lawns. Ortho and Scotts have weed killers to protect the precious over pampered, waste of space we call lawns from the likes of Mother Nature.

How to use:

Dose may vary from person to person, but general guidelines are as follows:

  • Dried herb (used for tea): 1 – 2 tsp dried flowers or flowering tops steeped in 8 oz. hot water for 1/2 hour; drink 2 – 3 cups daily
  • Powdered herb (available in capsules): 40 – 160 mg per day, or 28 – 85 mg of red clover isoflavones
  • Tincture (1:5, 30% alcohol): 60 – 100 drops (3 – 5 mL) three times per day; may add to hot water as a tea
  • Fluid Extract (1:1): 1 mL three times per day; may add to hot water as a tea
  • Standardized red clover isoflavone extracts: directions on product labels should be carefully followed
  • Topical treatment (such as for psoriasis or eczema): an infusion, liquid extract, or ointment containing 10 – 15% flowerheads; apply as needed unless irritation develops. Do not apply to an open wound without a doctor’s supervision.

 

As you might guess I am not a fan of lawns. I am sorry. They are nice to look at when they are all green and manicured. As a kid I hand mowed about a quarter of an acre of lawn every week which I actually enjoyed doing.  I don’t like lawns because I think today they are a colossal waste of time, money, water and effort.  Josh, #2 son, sent this to me about a year ago knowing how I feel about lawns. This is right on and what we call garden humor. Enjoy.

GOD AND ST. FRANCIS DISCUSSING LAWNS

GOD: Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.

ST. FRANCIS: It’s the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers “weeds” and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD: Grass? But it’s so boring. It’s not colorful. It doesn’t attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It’s temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

ST. FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it-sometimes twice a week.

GOD: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS: No Sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD: Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS: Yes, Sir.

GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS: You aren’t going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It’s a natural circle of life.

ST. FRANCIS: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD: No. What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD: And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD: Enough. I don’t want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you’re in charge of the arts. What movie have they scheduled for us tonight?”

ST. CATHERINE: “Dumb and Dumber”, Lord. It’s a really stupid movie about…..

GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

See you next week. Will be doing dandelions and two others.

Happy Crafting.

Wildcrafting part 1   Starter Guide

Wildcrafting part 2 Mugwort (bonus plant Wormwood) Yarrow, chickweed, and red clover

Wildcrafting part 3 dandelions and making flower essences

Wildcrafting part 4 The Cat’s Meow-A Real Lifesaver

Read Full Post »

For the Record – Quick update on GMO rulings 08/13/10 – 06/24/11 HOT DAMN!

Posted in community, GE, Genetically Modified Organism, GM, gmo, tagged , , , on August 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »

This is by Huffington Press
November 13, 2010
This is by Organic Consumer Association.
possible new twist in GM debate.

Wikileaks on GMO’s  12/2010

US retaliates against those that refuse to switch to GMO’s

Pope pushes GMO’s

Senate passes S510. Senator from Colorado, “It’s rigged.”
Senate passes S510 in the dead of night. Not good.

Congress sticks it to U.S. farmers with passage of food safety bill that will actually cause fresh p 12/21/10

www.naturalnews.com

Jeffery Smith interview on connection between US and Monsanto. 12/23/10

http://www.democracynow.org/seo/2010/12/23/wikileaks_cables_reveal_us_sought_to

California Judge orders GMO sugar beets destroyed. 12/07/10

http://www.naturalnews.com/030637_GMO_sugar_beets.html#ixzz17PTsJVAm

January 3, 2011

Europe, Japan to cancel grain contracts with Australia due to GMO contamination

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030902_GMOs_Australia.html#ixzz19xG51U4i

January 3, 2011

It just keeps getting better and better.

Watch for the coming collapse of Monsanto (Opinion)

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030896_Monsanto_collapse.html#ixzz19xGq7KUN

Peru keeps it pure. Bans  GMO’s for 10 years.   6/25/11
http://www.naturalnews.com/032803_Peru_GMOs.html#ixzz1QD6k1a4H

Read Full Post »

Wildcrafting #1 Starter guide

Posted in community, health & beauty, nature, plant identification, sustainability, sustainable lifestyle, tagged , , , , , , , on August 8, 2010| 3 Comments »

Wildcrafting #1: Starter guide

Introduction

Wildcrafting is the ancient art of taking care of yourself by taking care of Mother Nature.  A tried and true method of not only survival and sustainability, but also a way of promoting abundance, diversity and showing gratitude to dear old MOM who is always looking to shower us with blessings. It is a way of collecting  seeds, nuts, plants, roots, flowers from the wild. Before there was processed food and drive thru, before refrigerators or farms or agri business, before the neanderthal or the missing link there was wildcrafting.   Birds do it. Bees do it. Even educated fleas do it ( Cole Porter lyrics ) Let’s do it… Let’s wildcraft.

For starters understand the principal. Mother Nature provides us with everything we need to survive. There is quite an etiquette that goes with wildcrafting.  A whole bunch of rules that are spelled out for people who have lost all touch and connection with their roots. What once was obvious natural behavior practiced by indigenous people whose life depended on knowing the rules has become a lost art.  Here are the rules. http://home.klis.com/~chebogue/p.conWild.html Read them and understand them before you head out into the wild blue yonder.

For now just apply good common sense.

  • Positive ID of the plant a must.
  • Stay away from roadside plants that are contaminated with pollutants, polluted water and industrial areas.
  • Leave a place better than you found it best if there is no trace of your ever being there.
  • Always leave something so the next generation can produce and multiply.
  • Always thank Mother Nature and the plant for their gift.
  • Only take what you need.

When you have graduated to the next step you will need to check with local authorities and see what plants require a picking permit. Some herbs like the fiddle fern and Echinacea are protected. Some areas are protected. Check to make sure. You don’t want to be picking protected plants in restricted areas.   In the mean time, Trust me. Mom has a lot of goodies up her sleeve and there usually is an abundance of what you need and can use within arms reach.  So let’s get started in our own backyard and neighborhood.

Clean pickings is important. No pesticides, herbicides, snail, or rat poison, or roundup around. If you don’t know, leave it alone.  Getting a positive ID is critical. Know your plants. Mother Nature has a wonderful way of mimicking herself.  This is especially true in the mushroom department. So we are not going to do mushrooms here. You need an expert in this area. One mushroom with an ever so slight variation hardly visible to the human eye can be the deadly mimic to the edible variety.

An entire group of Maidu Indians died from collecting mushrooms from their usual foraging spot. The mushrooms had been contaminated with a wild spore that they had no way of knowing had settled on the mushrooms.  This put me off of  hunting mushrooms on my own.

Wild carrots, fennel and  poisonous hemlock have exactly the same flower arrangement the only difference is hemlock has a spotted hollow stem. We are going to start you off wildcrafting in familiar surroundings. This will teach you how to look for plants, see plants, and learn about their secret life.

Here is a picture of my front yard.

5’x10′ garden

It is 5‘x10’ and has over 100 wild herbs. spices, domestic and foreign. Can you find the yarrow, spearmint, ginger, horseradish, mustard, burdock, motherwort, vervain, ephedrine, fennel, wild radish, red clover, wooly mullein, scarlet pimpernel, dandelion, mugwort, violets, sage, comfrey, jasamine, rose hips, lavender, rosemary, honeysuckle, aloe, millet, onions, nasturtiums, plantain, borage, thyme, yellow sulfur plant, knot weed, curly dock, geraniums, apple, lemon, apricots, guava, cherry, bamboo, cattail and I still have not found a good use for crab grass but it’s there. I can promise you this wildcrafting can become an obsession.

I will do three plants per blog. Lets start with the common scarlet pimpernel. This is a little darling. So many uses. Find it.

ID it.

Know it.

http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/p/pimper33.html

Next. Salsify.

When I first saw this in the wild I thought I had found a new source of gold. This huge over sized dandelion looking seed pod shimmered like spun gold in the sunlight.  The wildflower book describes the color as brown but I am telling you it is gold. It grows wild. Brought some seeds home and it grew. The root looks like a carrot and taste like  an oyster.  Leaves are eatable. Taste best if harvested before it flowers.  Find it.

ID it.

Know it

Here is how you pronounce it and more. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlUVTPokwh4

http://www.foodreference.com/html/artsalsify.html

And lastly

Plantain (not the banana) Another one of those hidden treasures with secret powers.  There is broad leaf and English plantain. Picture is English variety. The parallel venation is a dead give away. The Indians chewed a leaf (saliva is the secret ingredient) mixed it with sap from the pine tree applied to splinters, etc. foreign objects needing to be removed, and within 24 hours the object was drawn out. Find it.

ID it

Know it

http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/p/placom43.html

(Note: I endorse these links because I like them. They are not advertisements, and I get no kickbacks. That’s nice huh?)

More next week

Part 2 Wildcrafting: Mugwort, Wormwood, Yarrow, and Red Clover

Part 3 Wildcrafting Dandelions, Curly dock, Jewelweed & Making flower essences

Part 4: Wildcrafting: The CAT’S MEOW A LIFESAVING PLANT

Read Full Post »

Declaration of Independence. Read it and Weep.

Posted in community, tagged , , on July 3, 2010| 4 Comments »

Happy 4th of July. Though, I am not exactly sure what we are celebrating.  This announcement just released July 3, 2010:  Obama has suspended the First Amendment rights in coverage of the Oil Spill.  http://www.examiner.com/x-34929-Manhattan-Conservative-Examiner~y2010m7d3-White-House-suspends-First-Amendment-rights-in-covering-damage-from-oil-spill To me this  is just one more nail in the coffin of our democracy.  Every grievance listed in the Declaration of Independence exists today.

The signers of the Declaration of Independence were from all walks of life with different points of view and political beliefs.  Not unlike our current Congress. And yet,they could all agreed on one single fact. King George III, Monarch of England was a tyrant. The Declaration of Independence indicted the king for Britain’s misdeeds. George III’s rhetorical transformation from symbol of monarchical benevolence to tyrant provided the ultimate justification for revolution.

The Declaration of Independence was our first breath, our first heart beat that separated us at birth from the tyrannical despot Mother England. You can not read the Declaration of Independence today without realizing that there is not one grievance  in the Declaration that does not exist today.  234 years ago these grievances were found to be so intolerable and egregious as to cause a revolution. If we need a reason to declare our independence from a tyrannical and unruly mob that is our government then all the right reasons are all here,  Read it and Weep.

The Declaration of Independence: A Transcription

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated:

Column 1

Georgia:

Button Gwinnett

Lyman Hall

George Walton

Column 2

North Carolina:

William Hooper

Joseph Hewes

John Penn

South Carolina:

Edward Rutledge

Thomas Heyward, Jr.

Thomas Lynch, Jr.

Arthur Middleton

Column 3

Massachusetts:

John Hancock

Maryland:

Samuel Chase

William Paca

Thomas Stone

Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:

George Wythe

Richard Henry Lee

Thomas Jefferson

Benjamin Harrison

Thomas Nelson, Jr.

Francis Lightfoot Lee

Carter Braxton

Column 4

Pennsylvania:

Robert Morris

Benjamin Rush

Benjamin Franklin

John Morton

George Clymer

James Smith

George Taylor

James Wilson

George Ross

Delaware:

Caesar Rodney

George Read

Thomas McKean

Column 5

New York:

William Floyd

Philip Livingston

Francis Lewis

Lewis Morris

New Jersey:

Richard Stockton

John Witherspoon

Francis Hopkinson

John Hart

Abraham Clark

Column 6

New Hampshire:

Josiah Bartlett

William Whipple

Massachusetts:

Samuel Adams

John Adams

Robert Treat Paine

Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:

Stephen Hopkins

William Ellery

Connecticut:

Roger Sherman

Samuel Huntington

William Williams

Oliver Wolcott

New Hampshire:

Matthew Thornton

The equivalent to a Declaration of Independence is a Writ of Mandate. A Writ  uses all the tools available  in a democracy to overrule a corrupt Congress. A Writ has the power to order elected officials to do certain things like uphold the Constitution.  It is a revolution without the blood.  A Writ is a court order so Congress is duty bound to obey the order or be in contempt. You could end up in jail on a contempt charge. I think a Writ would work very nicely on the issue of Campaign Finance Reform.  And that would just be the first of many reforms we could enable using a Writ. A Writ of Mandate is democracy in action. With this latest development and the suspension of the First amendment I feel  We need to do something pretty quick folks because it seems like we are losing it.

Read Full Post »

Green Eggs and Ham Try it Series. How to Make Mayo in a Blender Part 1 of as many as it takes

Posted in community, tagged , , on June 29, 2010| Leave a Comment »

How to Make Mayo in a Blender.  (Why?)

Over the past year or so we have blogged about sustainability and how to make a transition to a more practical and healthy lifestyle. We have talked about GMO’s, dirt, worms, native plants, container gardening, companion gardening, safe sex in the garden, GMO’s, clotheslines vs. clothes dryers, blue belly lizards and Lyme disease and of course GMO’s.  How to make Mayo in a Blender seems a little off topic. A subject perhaps that was not even a blip on your radar screen of things you need to know.

I can hear you thinking “ I don’t care about how to make mayo.”  “Is that really important in living a sustainable lifestyle?”  “Learning how to grow healthy food and kids now that is important and something I can relate to.” It is true you can live without mayonnaise. If everything came to a screeching halt and you couldn’t get mayo well that would not be the end of the world. So, where am I going with this anyway?  Have I finally jumped the tracks and run amok?  Not exactly.

This is about way more than making mayo.  This is about you learning how to read between the lines. This is about you learning how to learn. This is about you doing something that you didn’t ‘think’ you could do or didn’t think was that important.  This is all about you.

Our shows and blogs gave you a reason why you needed to change things. And then we showed you what happened when you made the change. We showed you the pitfalls and mistakes and changes and adjustments we had to make along the way. The Clothesline episode was a real learning experience on so many levels. And our first Garden with the Giant Mutant Sunflowers and out of control tomatoes well, we shared it all. We showed you a direct correlation between cause and effect. Always the choice to do it was entirely in your hands.

Making Mayo is going one step further. Making Mayo is about you coming up with the reason why you need to know this and discovering for yourself how it will affect your attitude and approach to life.

“Really?” All that is going to happen from learning how to make Mayo in a Blender?  Whatever.  O.k. Here are some of the reasons I think you will make. “This is not important to me. I haven’t got time to do this. This doesn’t make any sense to me. This is silly. I don’t want to know how to make Mayo in a blender. I don’t really care about this.”  If you think any of these responses were a good reason not to learn how to do this then let me point out what was really going on in your mind.

All of the above responses were excuses why you couldn’t do it and not reasons why you need to do it. What you were really saying was, “I don’t think I can do it. What if I make a mistake? I don’t want to fail. What if it doesn’t turn out? I have never done this before. I don’t know how to do this.”

The point of this whole exercise and this series that I am Calling Green Eggs and Ham Try it series, is to show that all the reason you need to do something is because you can. You can do this little exercise in how to make Mayo in a blender because you don’t need an excuse not to. You need a reason to do it and the reason is You CAN do it. And I promise you that this is just the first little baby step in a wonderful journey and experience on finding out who you are and what you are capable of. This is about you making changes because you know if you don’t do it someone else will do it for you.

Sure it may not work out exactly according to the instructions then it again it may be better. It may not taste as good as you expected or it may be even better than you expected. Who knows? The point is now You Will know. You don’t have to wonder what the outcome will be or if it will work or what it will taste like, or if you can do it.  You will know because you did it and found out for yourself. Now you can make the necessary changes to get the results you want. You can build on this new knowing experience and apply it to everything else in your life. Again, with the wild and extraordinary claims about this silly exercise.

Do you know of any babies that after falling down the first time they tried to walk stayed down and never got back up again. I don’t know of any and why is that? First, babies haven’t learned yet how to make excuses. So getting up and doing it again was the only thing to do and eventually one step leads to another and the race is on. Do you think a baby asks the questions like “where is all this going to lead? What happens next? Why am I doing this? You know the answer to this because you are the answer. You are walking, talking, running, and it all started with one baby step for no other reason than because you could.

Making Mayo is you taking your first steps outside of your comfort zone. This is a baby step.

Now watch this video on how to make Mayo. Make fun of all the grammatical mistakes, the lousy audio, the stumbles and fumbles I make along the way and giggle and laugh at me like I did. I would be the first to admit this is not very professional because I in fact don’t know what the heck I am doing. But that didn’t stop me. I am learning. Nobody starts out perfect. I am getting better. And honestly there is also a real sense of pride and accomplishment in this little piece. I really didn’t think I could ever film myself and even more remote was the idea of editing this to make a video. I love proving myself wrong more than anybody. I was really surprised and absolutely delighted with how much I was able to do just by doing it.  I am not expecting an Oscar. But who knows? If I keep doing it maybe it will happen.

I promise you, you will learn something not only about yourself but also about the world around you. I promise it will trigger something else in your brain that will lead to other adventures you never knew existed. Now do it. Make this Mayo in a blender. You know why. Because you can.

Read Full Post »

UPDATE ON STARTING A MOVEMENT AND GMO’S

Posted in community, tagged , , , on June 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

UPDATE!!!!!!

June 24 ,2010

Who in Congress is a Monsanto lover and opposes labeling GMO’s?  Find out here and take action. http://www.organicconsumers.org/bytes/ob230.htm#SEC3 Also Dennis Kucinich has 3 bills in Congress related to labeling GMO’s. Here in California Feinstein is a Monsanto lover. But Barbara Boxer is co-sponsoring labeling legislation with Kucinich.  Barbara’s got my vote.

June 21, 2010

Huffington Post

Supreme Court Case a Defeat for Monsanto’s Ambitions

This is not a break out the Champagne decision but it is sure worth a good glass of wine.

What does this mean?

The trial court based its injunction on its finding that, in approving the use of the alfalfa seed without conducting an EIS, USDA had failed to answer substantial questions concerning the extent to which deregulation would lead to the transmission of genetic traits to the crops of organic and conventional farmers and also whether the deregulation of the Roundup Ready Alfalfa would lead to the development of Roundup Ready Weeds.

This is the real news to take from today’s Supreme Court ruling – farmers and ordinary citizens concerned about the potential harms of GMOs have surmounted the essential threshold legal issue of whether they have standing to sue – a question the nation’s highest court answered today with a resounding “Yes!”

This site called ecocentric  explains the ruling in lay terms.

http://tinyurl.com/2dwjbsb

June 5,2010

Tell Congress to Label Genetically Modified Foods!

Non-GMO Month Planning Updates

Non-GMO Month Planning Updates

This October, retailers across the country will celebrate the first ever Non-GMO Month, putting the spotlight on Non-GMO Project Verified food and products. Coordinated by UNFI, Whole Foods Market, INFRA and the NCGA, in collaboration with the Non-GMO Project, Non-GMO Month will raise consumer awareness about the GMO issue and celebrate consumers’ right to choose non-GMO. A Non-GMO Day on October 10th (10.10.10) will feature speakers, film screenings and other educational events.

Vendors who enroll in the Non-GMO Project before June 15th will receive free ad space in UNFI’s October Specials catalogue. Contact us now to participate in this and other exclusive promotional opportunities!

Retailers interested in bringing Non-GMO Month to your store are encouraged to complete our online registration form.

I am thinking about printing up this registration form and taking it to some local stores to see if they would like to participate.  Then giving them some contact info and see what happens.

CODEX, MONSANTO AND THE  NEW WORLD ORDER.

MONSANTO AND HEALTH:  WHAT DOES  IRRADIATED?
MEAN?

http://current.com/technology/89334840_codex-alimentarius-food-and-monsanto.htm


Read Full Post »

6 Tricks to Growing Great Tomatoes

Posted in community, tagged , , , , , , , on June 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Tomatoes are America’s most popular home-grown crop.

6 Things You Need to Know to Grow Great Tomatoes.

First: Know your tomatoes.

Vining tomatoes are indeterminate which means they produce all season, need staking.  Some indeterminate vining tomatoes are Early Cascade, Early Girl, Quick Pick, Better Boy, Big Girl, Delicious, Beefmaster, Brandywine most cherry types and heirlooms. Grow vertical, tower, Can remove suckers.

Vining tomates

Vining Tomatoes

Bush tomatoes are determinate which means they are much more compact and grow and put out all at once. Rutgers, Roma, Celebrity are bush tomatoes. Only grows so high. Great container, patio plant. Removing suckers is not necessary.

Bush tomatoes

Bush tomatoes

Second: Temperature:

Tomatoes stop growing when the temperature is below 50 degrees and above 90 degrees. They can get sunburned. Protect them from hot temperatures over 90 degrees. If the leaves get burned they are now using all their energy to heal themselves and not making tomatoes.

Third: Planting:

When planting tomatoes take all but the first 3 set of leaves off the plant and bury up to the bottom set. This makes more roots. The more roots you have the more plant you have. The more plant you have the more tomatoes you have.

Fourth: Water:

Nothing likes wet feet except bog plants. Keep Soil Moist but not wet. Water early morning so the plants have a chance to dry off during the day. Only water the roots. Don’t get the foliage wet. Water droplets can burn holes in the leaves. Moist, damp conditions promote fungus, disease and invite insects.

Fifth: Fertilizer:

Tomatoes are heavy feeders. Feed them organic fertilizer like worm tea, bat guano, fish emulsion once a week. To encourage root growth put a little Epsom salt around the plant.  Magnesium sulfate encourages root growth. Healthy roots, healthy plant. Roses love a shot of Epsom salt too.

Need to Know: NPK nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium (N-P-K)

Represented with numbers like 6-4-6. First number is percentage of N Nitrogen. This grows leaves. Makes plants grow faster and greener. Lawns like a lot of nitrogen. Tomatoes not so much.

Second number is P phosphorus: Phosphorous aids in root development and increases flowering ability and bloom size.  Bone meal is high in phosphorus great for bulbs and petunias. Tomatoes not so much. It is all about balance. Too much of a good thing is still too much.

Third number is K Potassium or Potash. This aids stems and branches.

Stems are the transportation system that carries nutrients and water to all parts of the plant. Good source of K wood ashes, compost, manure (well seasoned)

The key here is a good healthy soil that has all the organic ingredients necessary.  Make the plant work by giving it a healthy environment and it will thrive. Too much false stimulation from inorganic fertilizers like Miracle Grow makes the plants lazy and they become addicted to fertilizers and forget how to grow. Worm tea is alive with microorganisms. Works with plants and soil.

Fifth: Mulch.

Cover with at least 2 inches of grass clippings  and/or wood chips. This provides weed control, nutrients and prevents water evaporation.

Sixth: Sunshine

Tomatoes, like onions, need at least 8 hours of sunlight to do their thing.

That’s it. You are good to go.

Little food for thought: Tomatoes are by botanical definition a fruit because they have seeds, as do peppers, green beans, squash and cucumbers. Tomatoes got reclassified a veggie to avoid a tariff on fruit production. Oh well, that makes more sense at least when it comes to ingredients I would use in a fruit salad.  Bon appetite.

Read Full Post »

What a mess. What to do.

Posted in community, tagged , , , , , , , , , on June 1, 2010| Leave a Comment »

gukurup.wordpress.com/2009/07/06/red-poppies/

Flanders field

So much tension in the world today.  The torpedo incident between North and South Korea. The unprecedented BP disaster in the Gulf. The Israeli attack on an aid ship to the Gaza. German President resigns over remarks on the Military. 1500 Indian Farmers Commit Mass

I am trying to make sense out of all this.  And I am not having an easy time of it.  Writing about how to grow bigger tomatoes, or keep the bugs at bay seems trite in comparison to current events. I know there is always something happening and going on in the world though to be honest I could not tell you what was happening last year at this time when I was writing about Bamboo and Natives plants.   These time seem different.   The intensity, severity and the sheer magnitude of recent events seems to be compounding its effect.  Little is getting resolved or fixed before something else collides into the mix.

I had to get a blog up but nothing seemed appropriate.  That is until this morning.  This seems  appropriate.  This video offers information we could all use and when applied to our lives could have a lasting and beneficial effect.

There is something for everyone.  Scientific proof, appeal to reason, and a feeling that connects us all together as human beings.  By explaining, in this very engaging format, what is going on with the human race does help to explain why I am feeling the way I do. Not much has changed except perhaps a better understanding of who I am.  And for whatever reason this seems to make a difference.  I guess all it takes to change the world is a change of heart.

Hope you enjoy this and if you find it worth while please pass it on.  It is titled Empathic Civilisation.

Read Full Post »

Gulf Coast Oil Spill – Sioux Prayer Request

Posted in community, tagged , on May 23, 2010| 2 Comments »

The Gulf Coast Oil Spill is an unprecedented disaster.  I feel so helpless. I want to do something  but I don’t know what.  I  do so love and honor Mother Nature. This hurts so deeply. I am not a particularly religious person. This recently came to me from another Nature Lover. It is heartfelt. I don’t know what else to do.

Gulf Coast Oil Spill – Sioux Prayer Request – A letter from Chief Arvol Looking Horse (Present Chief and Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe of the Lakota, Dakota, Nakota Nation of the Sioux)

Gulf Coast Oil Spill - Sioux Prayer RequestGulf Coast Oil Spill – Sioux Prayer Request

****** A Great Urgency ****** To All World Religious and Spiritual Leaders ******

My Relatives,
Time has come to speak to the hearts of our Nations and their Leaders. I ask you this from the bottom of my heart, to come together from the Spirit of your Nations in prayer.

We, from the heart of Turtle Island, have a great message for the World; we are guided to speak from all the White Animals showing their sacred color, which have been signs for us to pray for the sacred life of all things. As I am sending this message to you, many Animal Nations are being threatened, those that swim, those that crawl, those that fly, and the plant Nations, eventually all will be affect from the oil disaster in the Gulf.

The dangers we are faced with at this time are not of spirit. The catastrophe that has happened with the oil spill which looks like the bleeding of Grandmother Earth, is made by human mistakes, mistakes that we cannot afford to continue to make.

I asked, as Spiritual Leaders, that we join together, united in prayer with the whole of our Global Communities. My concern is these serious issues will continue to worsen, as a domino effect that our Ancestors have warned us of in their Prophecies.

I know in my heart there are millions of people that feel our united prayers for the sake of our Grandmother Earth are long overdue. I believe we as Spiritual people must gather ourselves and focus our thoughts and prayers to allow the healing of the many wounds that have been inflicted on the Earth. As we honor the Cycle of Life, let us call for Prayer circles globally to assist in healing Grandmother Earth (our Unc’I Maka).

We ask for prayers that the oil spill, this bleeding, will stop. That the winds stay calm to assist in the work. Pray for the people to be guided in repairing this mistake, and that we may also seek to live in harmony, as we make the choice to change the destructive path we are on.

As we pray, we will fully understand that we are all connected. And that what we create can have lasting effects on all life.

So let us unite spiritually, All Nations, All Faiths, One Prayer. Along with this immediate effort, I also ask to please remember June 21st, World Peace and Prayer Day/Honoring Sacred Sites day. Whether it is a natural site, a temple, a church, a synagogue or just your own sacred space, let us make a prayer for all life, for good decision making by our Nations, for our children’s future and well-being, and the generations to come.

Onipikte (that we shall live),
Chief Arvol Looking Horse
19th generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe

Read Full Post »

More Bang for your Buck: Companion Gardening

Posted in community, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 15, 2010| 4 Comments »

One big happy family.

Call it French intensive, postage stamp gardening, square foot gardening, edible landscapes, permaculture,it all works. The idea here is to get the biggest yield with the least amount of time, effort, and space. $10 worth of seeds will yield $650 worth of food if you play your cards right. There is a trick. The trick is companion gardening. It isn’t new, Mother Nature has been doing it forever.

Look at any wild area where Nature has had her way and you will see many different kinds of plants growing, thriving, helping each other with soil nutrients, sun and shade protection, repelling pests, attracting pollinators. Pretty intense stuff with no help or interference from humans.

It's a jungle out there

Man likes to do Monoculture which is rows and rows of the same plant exposed, isolated and helplessly stretched across horizon less fields. This kind of farming takes big bucks and every minute of every day to maintain. Man has to play god trying to do what nature does naturally.  So, monoculture has to  kill everything that the plant comes in contact with: It kills the weeds, the pollinators, microorganism and then has to spend money replacing these things with artificial fertilizes, artificial pest control, artificial shade, artificial light, artificial weed control, artificial temperature control, artificial water. Even the plant has been shot full of chemicals so it can resist all the chemicals that go on it. Our modern-day monoculture is on chemotherapy. Pretty expensive stuff.

Monoculture

The difference here is as long as we have a bucket of dirt or a square inch of soil we can give nature a hand in our own backyard and it will not cost us anything.

It doesn’t cost Nature a cent to make things grow. Her trick is cooperation. She puts her kingdoms in charge of each other’s happiness.  Little seeds fall onto rich fertile soil that was left there by the former occupants that takes root and blooms and grows. Natural sunlight, heat, bees, butterflies, rain, wind, worms, microorganisms all go about making life a joy and a wondrous affair to remember.

Getting a head start.

Mom’s a genius when it comes to making stuff grow.   We have learned by watching Her at work that certain plants bring out the best in each other. Just like good friends. So, lets look at a couple of things we can do to get the most bang for our buck. One way is by planting plants that like each together.  Then invite some friendly working insects into the mix  and you have a garden teeming with life.

So let’s get started with the classic Indian method called the 3 sisters. You plant corn in the back you plant beans at the base of the corn and squash in front of the beans. The beans enrich the soil with nitrogen that the corn and squash love. The beans use the corn as a trellis and the squash covers the ground like a mulch retaining moisture.  You can do cucumbers instead of squash but then it would be 2 sisters and an in-law.

I am going to give you a link to show all the companion plants but I’ll bet you already know quite a few. A rule of thumb is usually what goes good in the pot  works good together in the garden. Think spaghetti garden, tomatoes, parsley, garlic, and basil all work great together.   Plant an enchilada garden  cilantro, peppers, onions more garlic.  This is just getting your mind wrapped around the idea of mixing it all up.

Word about plants that hate each other. Tomatoes and strawberries fight like cats and dogs. Carrots and dill, don’t sound good and either does lettuce and cabbage.  If you think about it we don’t mix these things together when we eat them so more than likely they are not going to work well together in the garden.

The Clydesdale of the garden.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tagetes_patula

French marigolds

Put them everywhere.

When you plant all these different things together it confuses the bad bugs as opposed to putting everything in a neat little roll where they can zero in on it. Don’t make it easy for bugs make it easy for you. The plants do the work by helping each other.

Here is a great site for more info on Companion gardening, beneficial insects and weeds. Yes, there is such a thing as a good weed.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants

I want you to be able to identify good bugs and insects in the garden. So, here is a list of beneficial with pictures. Be kind and let them be.

Assassin Bug

assassin bug

assassin bug

Lacewing

Lacewing

lacewing eggs

Lady Beetle

lady beetles

ladybug

Parasitic Wasp

parasitic wasp

parasitic wasp

That should get you started on beneficial bugs.  Here is a list and a link to more of the same.

List  of other beneficial.

Having fun in the garden makes the food taste better. So have some fun. Variety is the spice of life.

Circle of Life

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started