One of my favorite topics in herbalism is the subject of children’s health. Part of the reason for this is that being a mother has given me a great opportunity to practice herbalism related to first aid and common illnesses. It has also put me in a position as a teacher modeling how herbs can […]
Gardening is a practice that can be therapeutic on so many levels. Gardening is medicine. It can connect us to the earth and ourselves in a very deep way, a way we will only begin to understand once we partake in the magic. –Sheila Coughlin Spring has arrived, and my family’s greenhouse is getting ready […]
Next growing season, my family and I are embarking on the adventure of opening a small, family-run native plant nursery. We spent months setting up the greenhouse this past fall and have been busy working towards getting the operation up and running to set-up plant sales at local farmers’ markets. Although we won’t be opening […]
Well, I’m back! It’s been several months since my last post. I’ve been busy with political involvements prior to the November election and busy with other projects in life. I’m excited to get going again with monthly posts, do a little redesign of the site, and keep flowing in the direction of following my bliss […]
At home, I love being surrounded by my favorite plants that remind me of my childhood. I’ll always remember walking down my family’s dirt road with a bucket for picking blueberries and raspberries making my way to some of the choice berry picking places of my youth. Along the way, two plants stick out in […]
Happy World Bee Day! This past December, the United Nations General Assembly declared March 20th to be World Bee Day. Just like Earth Day, though, I don’t see why we don’t just declare it to be World Bee Day every day. As pollinators, bees can be thanked for 1/3 of our world’s crop production. Foods […]
Morel Mushroom season is just around the corner in Minnesota, and shroomers across the state are getting excited! My family is fairly new to the hunt, so I’m definitely not an expert on finding them. Still, I want to share some on the Morel Mushroom from what I’ve learned over the past few years. Nature […]
It’s fun to have your own family, foraging traditions. Every year, my family and I have a special place by the river where we go spring foraging. Our favorite wild edibles along the riverbank are the fiddleheads of Ostrich Fern, Matteucia struthiopteris. We head out to the river right around the time the leaves start […]
It’s April, and my family and I are getting excited for spring foraging. Over the next several weeks, I’ll be sharing this excitement with posts focused on foraging and wildcrafting. We’ll discuss a few plants that are easy to recognize, positively identify, and harvest sustainably. There will also be some fun, educational ways to get […]
“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it turned into a butterfly.” –Anonymous Every spring my son and I have fun exploring life cycles. We have observed tadpoles from our pond from egg to frog, observed the various pond life under the microscope, raised baby Lionhead rabbits, and raised Monarch butterflies from egg […]
