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POST 11/17/04: Our Mother's bounty is hers to keep now, at
least in the Northern Hemisphere. If you haven't yet mulched
your garden space, the next week or two will probably hold the
best window of opportunity to complete the chore with maximum
benefit for the plants. Remember to distribute any remaining
compost/manure reserves around the root crowns of established
colonies. It may be worth getting a little extra manure for your
rosebushes as well.
Bring in all of your fragile lawn ornaments but try to leave a few
things outside (durable windchimes are always appreciated, or
double sided mirror discs) for the winter earth spirits. They will
continue to guard your growing space and guide its co-creative
learning curve. Make plans to leave special offerings of thanks
for these spirts sometime between now and the winter solstice ...
PLEASE NOTE ALL PREVIOUS POSTINGS FOLLOW IN THEIR
CONSECUTIVE ORDER.
These last days of summer can be very hectic for professional
or survivalist gardeners. When I work at my own harvest
chores I send such gardeners prayers for peaceful moments
in the midst of their necessary frenzy.
The Sparkling Lotus garden beds are primarily a learning
laboratory. This is the time of the year when my teachings
revolve around seed collecting and uncomplicated therapeutic
infusions. Time tested northeast corridor favorites will be
appearing on this page over the next few weeks. Please check
back frequently and feel free to contact
Acey with your questions.
VERY EASY & BEAUTIFUL SORE MUSCLE RELIEF
Here in the northeast Goldenrod is coming into flower. Gather a
generous bowl or basket full of the flower heads. Place them in
an enamel pan or crock pot and crush them very gently. You can
use a small bowl as a tool to get the blossoms carefully but
thoroughly bruised. Cover the flowers with a good grade of olive
oil. Simmer on lowest possible stove heat for several (7-12)
hours or in a 100 degree crockpot for 2-4 hours (until flower
material is BECOMING crispy - but not yet that way in defining
consistency)
Cool and let sit for a few days then drain-off the water and plant
sediment. This is an excellent restorative oil for sore muscles.
Add an appropriate therapeutic essential oil. I like to use
spearmint because it is strongly hydrating and thus nourishing as
well as soothing for most patterns of fibromyalgia. Lavender oil
is another solid choice. You can also try rose absolut. If
possible bottle the oil with the company of a few fresh sunflower
petals.
EASY 'SPARKLE' VINEGAR
This is so simple to prepare and yields so much benefit
throughout the late fall and winter that I advise all my students to
prepare the brew and share it generously within their First Circles.
Have on hand a wide mouthed glass jar and enough ORGANIC
red cider vinegar to fill it.
NOTE: The jar should have a plastic lid or you need to insert
wax paper or plastic wrap
between the metal lid and the vinegar in the jar.
Gather a generous handful of fresh plantain leaves and an
equal-to-slightly-greater amount of fresh mugwort leaves. Add
these to the jar with a pint of fresh raspberries. If fresh leaves of
raspberry are available add them as well.
Infuse for six weeks with daily agitations of the bottle. I advise
students to make the task of bottle-shaking a meditative and
utterly mindful prayer of healing. This is as important to practical
medicine making as the eventual return of the plant materials to
Our Mother.
Let this infusion 'set' for six-eight weeks. Decant and store in
brown or cobalt dropper bottles. Try 3-12 drops in drinking water
at bedtime for maximum cellular absorption
ORGANIZE NOW FOR THE COMING HARVEST. Make sure
you have enough bottles and brandy/vodka for the root
medicines you're planning to collect. Make sure you are in a
strong established communication with those roots. Strive to
hear the plant's medicine song as a kind of mantra during
Dreamtime.
NOTE: If Hyssop is still blooming for you, make a small tincture
from the flowers and freshest leaves This wil be much
appreciated during cold, flu and bronchitis season
FURTHER NOTE: Some of my students love the plantain
medicine spirit so much that they create very thick pastes of the
mashed or shredded leaves and apricot or olive oil. This keeps
well in a refrigerator, with some careful attendance. The very
primitive salve is much appreciated for Winter Splinters and
stubborn patches of dry skin. This simple remedy makes a solid
practical alternative to a springtime chickweed-plantain oil
infusion.
FENNEL SEEDS can be collected before they're completely ripe.
Gather the seedheads in a large shallow basket that will serve
as a drying bowl. As the seeds dry and shake themselves free
remove the seedhead skeletons and place the seeds in a clean
glass jar. Reserve enough to make a few ounces of fennel seed
tincture. This is a great simple remedy to keep on hand when
travelling or otherwise eating in an unfamiliar Way. Grind the
freshly dried seeds in a blender with enough vodka to cover the
seeds and fill a small glass container. Let the infusion sit for 6-10
weeks, shaking the bottle frequently.
NOTE: When employing fennel seed as an ally in sickness or for
symptoms of chronic complaint let 1-2 cups of the infusion brew
overnight and administer in scant third-cups throughout the next
day.
Harvest seeds of all kind in dry sunny weather. You can put
partially unriped seedpods in pasta bowls or other slightly
protective dishes to continue their development process while
'safe' in your collection scheme of the day.
Earth Medicine students now have a very finite number of days to
finish manifesting their harvesting intentions. We're following the
practice that is echoed throughout indigenous cultures - Once All
Saint's Eve/Day of the Dead/Pagan New Year arrives, the gifts of
our mother are Hers to keep. The only exception we make in
Sparkling Lotus-land relates to roses that come into bloom any
later than Thanksgiving. These are brought into the house with
strong blessings from the changing nature guardians.
This close to the cross-quarter day I generally advise a diligent
but relaxed harvest of everything that your growing space or
gathering fields offer. NOTE that this may differ from previous
plans based on lunar phases and signs. It may also differ from
our planned practical intentions. Sometimes, the opportunity to
harvest something from our intentional/wish gathering list just
never seems to materialize. I have students who have shared my
experience of an energetic discharge from plants that wished to
be left in their own service rather than ours. We may start out
intent to fill our wildcrafting bag and wind up distributing an entire
season's worth of sacred offering material!
TIP: If you're making root tinctures pick a root that is particularly
significant to your personal healing and process the plant matter
by hand rather than a blender or food processor. If possible work
with a root that is new or relatively untested at a personal level.
Whenever you have space, keep your tincture bottles on your
altar. Consider creating an altar with-in another more 'practical'
space where you may keep your medicine bottles in progress.
Whenever possible mulch with compost before applying leaf
matter, straw or salt hay. Some of my students like to dig small
pits at side-areas of their gardening space. These can be filled
with green compost layered with hay or leaf matter. Add well
rotted manure to the layers as available and in discretionary
proportion to other ingredients on hand. Cover with topsoil and
straw mulch. Excavate and redistribute near the end of May.
Everyone has favorite harvest rituals. Some of my students love
the pruning and distribution chores involved with many mints,
veronica and other fast growing ground cover. My family loves
the process of digging roots for medicinal tinctures. I like
stretching out on the ground in the main bed's passageway
soaking in the warmed grounding energy as much as I can before
the earth moves closer to freezing.
Students ask if salt hay is worth the extra cost. Yes -- at least in
a first few years of your garden's development. Application is
the same as with any straw mulch. Protect perennial crowns by
nestling the straw around the base of the leaves rather than
covering the top of the plant. Remember to mulch your roses
with well rotted manure. The optimum height is one foot above
ground, further wrapped with wiring and perhaps burlap to
protect the canes.
In Sparkling Lotus-land we use a combination two layer mulch of
composted plant matter and fresh sterile hay. Combinations of
larkspur and poppy seeds are sown both on top of and under the
mulch. This produces annual seedlings in two age brackets and,
thus, a longer blooming season for both species.
Begin cutting back fragrant and culinary herbs like rosemary,
tarragon, scented geraniums and lemon verbena. If lavender
buds are well dried from early harvest, this is a good time to grind
some in a blender with vodka. Put this up in a glass jar and
agitate the bottle several times a week. After 6-10 weeks, decant
and strain. This will make an absolutely beautiful tincture that
aids in the relief many kinds of head and sinus pain, nausea,
low-level diarrhea, and free-floating anxiety/insomnia distress.
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