Community Gardens: Ideas on How to Start One

Traditional Witchcraft Recommended Websites

Garden Progress & Thrift Store Finds...

Hello everyone! I hope that you are all enjoying Spring so far! :) I've been busy with a little garden work and taking care of things for our new home.

I got some of the sod paths out of the garden and put some paths tiles and rocks down. The paths are really cock-eyed and I will fix them eventually; I wanted to get them laid down fairly quickly so I would know the borders of the beds that I have prepped so far for this year. The three beds in the foreground finally have some garlic in them {yay!}.

Yesterday I took a break from the grind and did a little shopping at a local thrift shop. I got boring things that we needed, but also found some pretties {which we 'needed' too! ;)}

Scooby Doo tooth brush holder.

I am not 100 percent certain, but I think that this is just a print and not an original.

A chalice for my witchy workings.

A good old fashioned bank account.

Nifty recipes and it dries your dishes!

Sláinte!

Laurel

Luverly of the Week: Photo from Computer Science Geek

Photo from Computer Science Geek

Dig for Victory

I saw this video over at City Farmer. I love old victory garden propaganda, and this is a fine example. :) Enjoy!

Sláinte!

Laurel

Spring Tidings & More Garden Plans...

Well, today is the first day of Spring for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, and I welcome it with open arms! It is also Ostara for Heathens, Wiccans and other Pagans; if you are interested in learning more about folklore and rituals or maybe would like some recipe ideas, you can check out a post I did this time last year.

There is a women's gathering tomorrow that I will try and make it to and the snow has now left the forecast, so I might get out into the garden as well. Otherwise it will be pretty quiet 'round here for the Vernal Equinox this year.

I mentioned yesterday that I would be doing some rearranging and expansion in the garden, and I am quite excited about this. To me these changes are a part of the whole 'nesting' routine and solidifying our lives more in the direction of homesteaders.

I am sure that this will be a process that will take place over a couple of years at least, but if we are going to set roots here, I would love to add things such as fruit trees, a small green house, and of course cluckers!

But first things first...

For the already existing beds that I dug up last year, I am going to expand the garden towards where the pots are in this picture by a few more feet and remove all the sod. It will no longer be a 'grid' but one whole patch with quadrants. The paths will be 'meandering' and will be made of reclaimed materials such as stones, tiles, bricks and glass bottles. {Click here and here to see what I mean}.

I think that this will give us a little more planting space and I will definitely be spending less time plucking out weeds that come from the sod path.

We carved out a circular bed last year and placed a tarp over it in the hopes of making it a little bit easier to start this year. I will probably make it a touch bigger than this, and it will be home to some sun-loving veggies and herbs.

Throughout the rest of the yard I will be planting a few more native and naturalized plants that have some use to us, such as healing properties, helping the compost along, or attracting pollinators. It gets really wild and woolly in the Summer, with lots of beautiful weeds and I want to keep it that way as much as possible. ;)

There is even more growing space at the front and the sides of the house, but I haven't really figured out what to do with those save for scattering wild flower seeds on the front lawn.

Well, I guess that is it for now. I hope you all enjoy the first day of Spring {or Autumn}! :)

Sláinte!

Laurel

Green in the Garden & Other News...

Lemon Balm

So the snow has finally melted in the backyard and I found *green things* in the garden! We are supposed to get about 7 cm of snow on the Spring Equinox, but hopefully it will bugger off soon after!

The garden is a bit of a mess and the greenery isn't overly impressive, but I am happy to see it nonetheless! :)

English Thyme

The garden is going to be expanded and rearranged and I will post more on that in a bit.

Our move has been halted because there was a bit on a flood in our new place, and it needs to have some errr....maintenance. We have moved some of our stuff in already, but the rest will have to wait until there is new flooring, drywall and paint put in.

Now I know why we procrastinated a bit {better to happen before we move in than after!}. ;)

And a happier tid bit of news is that I will be doing some work on a farm this year after all! I have a friend who runs a CSA and she has invited me to do a work share. Happy, happy day!

In some ways this has really lifted my spirits because I thought for sure I wouldn't be getting any farm time in this season because of the trial coming up in June. So even though I am not doing a full blown internship yet, I am elated to have this opportunity!

Sláinte!

Laurel

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

Lovely lass from Vintage Holiday Crafts

Click here for some wonderful recipe ideas and have a listen to the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast's Saint Patrick's Day special. Enjoy. :)

Sláinte!

Aymi & Laurel

Northern Harvest Event

Hi there folks! I got thought that I would pass this event along to any of our readers who might be in the North Bay area. :)


Vested Interest Presents...

Northern Harvest Night!

TASTE TEST LOCAL BEEF, LAMB, BISON & CHEESE AND LEARN HOW TO GET YOUR WEEKLY VEGETABLES THIS SUMMER FROM LOCAL GROWERS!

Thursday March 25th
6-9pm
AT THE DOWNTOWN STORE (123 MCINTYRE ST.W.)

Did you know that Vested Interest sells locally made goods? From Board's Honey products to Mains de Mariposa hand lotions, our downtown store features over 10 local artists! And the list is growing! Be sure to check out our Locavore Room while you're here for Northern Harvest Night!

Golden Beef

Golden Beef is a premium beef product produced by a cooperative of dedicated farmers in the Temiskaming and Cochrane area. Golden Beef cattle are raised only on pasture, hay and silage resulting in a very lean and healthier beef that has increased levels of B12. No antibiotics or growth promoting hormones are used. Come out and try this amazing, locally produced beef!

Pasture Hill Farms

Pasture Hill Farm is a family run sheep farm, located outside of New Liskeard in the Little Claybelt area. Jim Johnston and Wanda Cook's philosophy is to use grazing animals to harvest solar energy (sunshine) by converting grass into meat. Using their sheep to do what they do best , on pasture, Jim & Wanda are able to minimize their use of machinery, fuel, fertilizer, pesticides and antibiotics. Come taste the sunshine in their delicious lamb!

Soutar Highlands Farm

Soutar Highlands Farm has been serving North Bay and area since 1913. They have adopted a Nature Balanced approach to raising their vegetable crops that is free of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. By putting organics back into the soil their plants are naturally resistant to pests and disease while producing tasty, environmentally sustainable vegetables and berries. Come meet Donna Soutar, try her amazing garlic, and learn how to get weekly fresh, local vegetables this summer!

Thornloe Cheese

Award winning Thornloe Cheese is produced in the town of Thornloe, 15 km north of Temiskaming Shores. It is farmer owned and has been producing for over 68 years. It's cheese has been recognized with first place prizes at the Royal Winter Fair and the British Empire Cheese Show. If you haven't tried it already, come out and see what you've been missing!

Bison du Nord

Bison du Nord is an all natural pasture fed bison product from the ranch of Pierre and Francoise Belanger in Earlton.
This family owned and operated business has been producing since 1972. The ranch accomodates 200-400 bison who range freely.
Bison du Nord offers several delicious products such as Bison pie, breakfast sausages and pepperettes as well as ground bison and steaks. The meat is exceptionally lean and healthy and you won't regret giving it a try!

Plus Vested will be having a one night only storewide sale! Come check out what's new! Try some of our awesome hot sauces, BBQ sauces and dips! And enter to win great door prizes! If you missed our hugely successful Ladies Night event, you won't want to miss this one!

Sincerely,

Your friends at Vested Interest Trading!

Luverly of the Week: Lady Rowan from Stephanie Lostimolo

Lady Rowan from Stephanie Lostimolo

Stephanie Lostimolo has other luverlies in her Etsy shop, including endearing prints of corvids, jewelry, photography. Go check her out. :)

Necromancy...

Creating Local Food Security & Sustainable Agriculture

Nothing Much Going on Here...

...but apparently Some Bullshit is Happening Somewhere.

Sorry the posts here have been a bit sparse. We've both been pretty busy and don't have much worthwhile to post at the moment. So, hopefully this little luverly from The Onion will entertain you all to make up for it. ;)

Sláinte!

Laurel

{In case you couldn't tell from the title, this is just a warning that there is some naughty language in this video!}

Garden Plans for 2010

Howdy folks! I know many of you already have your gardening season underway, whether you are just starting seeds indoors or you already have plantings outdoors. I will probably not have time to start anything indoors since we changed house, but soon enough the snow will be gone and we can start planting in the ground {!!!}.

We have quite a few perennials that we are hoping will come back, including chives, lemon balm, spearmint, peppermint, catnip, a few sages, a few thymes, lady's mantle, motherwort, and sweet woodruff. I am in the process of finally up our 2010 garden plans, and this is what we are hoping to grow this year:

Squash & Pumpkins:

Kuri, Buttercup, Butternut, Pie

Carrots:

Atomic Red, Scarlet Nantes, Cosmic Purple

Beets:

Kissing Booth {from Soggy Creek}, Early Wonder, Detroit Golden

Radish:

French Breakfast, Cherrybell, Crop Circle {from Soggy Creek}

Pole Beans:

Kentucky Wonder, Scarlet Runners, Northeaster, Blue Lake, Mustache {from Soggy Creek}

Bush Beans:

Black Turtle, Orca, Jacob's Cattle

Peas:

Peas for Peace {from Soggy Creek}, Laxton's Progress, Blue Podded

Turnip:

Hobo {from Soggy Creek}, Golden globe

Chard:

Rainbow

Kale:

Dinosaur and Red Russian

Onions:

Evergreen Bunching and Red Baron

Potatoes:

Penta and Chieftan Red

Spinach:

Bloomsdale Longstanding

Lettuce:

Red Deer Tongue, Oakleaf, Blackseeded Simpson, Freckles

Tomatoes:

Brandywine, Matt's Wild, Black Krim, Zebra, Eva Purple Ball, Rainbow Cherry

Garlic:

Red Russian and Porcelain

Herbs:

Basil, Dill, Cilantro, Nasturtiums, Oregano, Marjoram, Lavender, Parsley, Scullcap, Yarrow, and Marigold.

Speaking of seeds, there are a couple of awesome things that I wanted to mention!

First, One Green Generation is hosting a growing challenge again this year. This is my third year signing up, so I am going to give the Evangelist Edition a try. They still have the other two going, so if interested, head on over and sign yourself up!

Also, the folks over at Seeds of Diversity are asking gardeners to save seeds from endangered species. Check out their library to get an idea of what seeds you could perhaps save.

So what are you all growing for 2010?

Sláinte!

Laurel

Organic Seed Production Workshop in Ottawa

Howdy folks!

I got an email about this workshop and I thought I would share it with any readers who might happen to be growers and in Eastern Canada.

Eastern Canadian Organic Seed Growers Network & Seeds of Diversity are holding a workshop called Planning Your Farm's Organic Seed Production: The ABC’s of Crop Planning, Crop Economics and CFIA Regulations from April 10th to 11th in Ottawa Ontario. Here is a blurb about the workshop:

Have you ever thought about adding a couple seed crops to your organic farm? There is a lack of good quality organic seed available from local producers in Eastern Canada. This two-day workshop will address some of the regulations and economics of growing organic seed on a market scale. It will also provide a forum for seed growers and seed companies to further build the growing Eastern Canadian organic seed network.

This weekend targets seed people of all levels of experience. During this weekend participants who are new to seed production will make a seed production plan to grow one seed crop this summer.

You can find out more here.

Sláinte!

Laurel

Luverly of the Week: Donna Haraway

Photo from Rusten Hogness

Donna Haraway, writer, feminist, and professor. The author behind A Cyborg Manifesto.