This native evergreen shrub of the Mediterranean is one of the few herbs still bedazzling the garden in the somber Winter months. In Mississippi, where I live, I have to make sure not to crowd the crown of the roots or have debris touching the lower branches as the humidity will tend to rot the … Continue reading
Holy Mo-lay (Mole)
Cacao pods and cacao beans in their raw form For many years I have been a chocolate devotee. Fortunately, as I have aged, I have learned the deeper layers to this amazing plant ally. What started as a young addiction to over-sugared Cadbury eggs has now turned into a full-fledged reverence for the cacao tree … Continue reading
Zucchini Quinoa Pancakes with Sorghum-Rose Water Syrup
Zucchini growing (notice the flowers at the end of the fruit) While reading Dr. Natasha’s book called “Gut and Psychology Syndrome” (a great manifesto on the gut-mind connection and how the healing of the gut can remedy autism, schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder, and a host of other things), I found a great recipe for a grain-free … Continue reading
Long-lost, Long-leaf: The Return of a Forgotten Forest?
An old-growth stand of Long-leaf pine (Florida?) She was 92 million acres total before the early European colonizers began to cut her trees down or to tap into her resin for turpentine and rosen. She stretched from coastal Virginia to Florida and from Florida to Texas. What is left of her, you may ask — … Continue reading
Eat Dirt
That’s right… Eat dirt. No, you’re not in some John Wayne western all of a sudden…where we are facing each other, standing off with a hand on our gun and snarling… No, it’s not a threat. It’s a health tip. I’m talking about the good stuff — soil. In the year 2000, right before I … Continue reading
In Honor of the Alewife
My micro micro micro brewery It started about four years ago. I began brewing tea to make kombucha with a live bacteria-yeast culture. This culture has mysterious origins like many of the cultures that are passed down. No one can make one out of ingredients, you must get a culture from someone else. There is … Continue reading
Insects to Birds and Kumbhaka
the time before dawn There was a particular time right before dawn that I experienced fully awake a few weeks ago. It was a haunting experience that has me desiring to spend more time awake at this time of day. I am just now remembering that moment. And, although it’s something familiar to me — … Continue reading
Chestnuts: Winter is Near, Fall is Here
Chinese Chestnuts harvested in early September, NE Georgia Nothing quite says that it’s time for Fall like chestnuts. And, no smell alludes to cold, Winter nights spent indoors, like baked chestnuts. It’s harvesting time! Keep your eyes peeled for spiny, prickly seed pods dropping from large trees… Chinese Chestnut revealing itself We just harvested the … Continue reading
Some New Drawings
“And so our mothers and grandmothers have, more often than not anonymously, handed on the creative spark, the seed of the flower they themselves never hoped to see – or like a sealed letter they could not plainly read.” ~ Alice Walker Scorpion inspired Incomplete drawing: Playing with patterns Small fire Movement
Healing Clay
One of the simplest home remedies is the use of healing clay — internally and externally. Although the practice of using clay as a cleanser, detoxifier and remineralizing agent is coming back…I feel like it’s time to write some information about it to help get the word out on this great age-old healer. First, there … Continue reading
Lindsay Kolasa 