Learning about the Environmental Benefits of Rain Barrels!

"Make a Rain Barrel" class at the
Frelinghuysen Arboretum, Morris County, NJ

Today's post is more about Environmental Stewardship than medicinal botanicals.  Last night, I spent my Spring Equinox evening learning to make a rain barrel as part of my ongoing education toward a more Sustainable Living.  In this case, the class focused on water conservation, reducing rain water runoff that can erode the environment, and water pollution control by diverting the water that customarily runs down the driveway carrying brake dust, antifreeze, oil drippings and other not-so-desirable debris into the storm sewers.

Did you know:  an average rainfall event in NJ yields 1" of water!  Spread over a basic roof area of 800 sq ft (roughly 40' x 20'), that 1" of rainfall will equal about 500 gallons.  NJ has an average of 45" of rain per year, so rainfall from one rooftop for the entire season can average nearly 22,500 gallons of water!

If every household used one (1) 55 gallon rain barrel like the one pictured from class, each family can save about 1,400 gallons of water from April through October - simply by redirecting one downspout into the barrel.  If you wanted to get fancy, you could daisy-chain several barrels together with connector hoses and save more rainwater for gardening, and helping to protect landscaped yards during a drought or from too much run-off water all at once.  Building a rain barrel is pretty straightforward, and there are even directions easily found online. 

Not fond of that bright blue plastic barrel clashing with the theme and colors of your home - get artistic!  Grab some sandpaper, an appropriate primer paint for plastics, and some colorful acrylics to create a custom-decorated rain barrel to blend into your yard. 

Be sure to check out the Frelinghuysen Arboretum for other eco-friendly, sustainable living classes, such as "Eco-Friendly Lawn Care", "Planting a Pollinator-Friendly Garden" and so much more.  http://arboretumfriends.org/events#1214

As we turn the wheel of the year, get out and be a part of this new season! 
Happy Vernal Equinox and Green Blessings!

Celebrating the Vernal Equinox (Ostara)!

What a difference a year makes!  Here in northwestern NJ, last year’s never-ending-winter was still maintaining it’s snowy/icy grip at the Vernal Equinox, and now in 2012, we have had such a mild season that I can hardly even call it 'winter'.  Six weeks ago at Imbolc, the daffodils were already pushing up through the unfrozen ground;  this year as we approach March 21, hyacinths, daffodils, tulips and crocus are already blooming, trees are budding and decorative shrubs, roses, lilacs and viburnams have their new leaves emerging.  The ground is soft and moist, but not soggy.  With barely one noteworthy snowstorm this winter (excepting the freak Halloween storm that pummeled the trees and knocked out power for 8 days here) I can hear the cries of ‘drought’ in the not too distant future.  For now, the world is greening again as the days lengthen and the daytime temps soar into the unseasonably warm 60’s and 70’s, as they have been doing intermittently for the last six weeks.  The weather forecasters are calling for temps to be in the 80's for this Thursday, March 22.  As we turn the wheel of the year, get outside and be part of this new season!



Found this lovely graphic of Ostara
on several sites, citing one:
 www.thespiritofthegoddessis.nl/

March 21st is widely-known as the Spring Equinox, one of the two days a year when the sun is directly over the equator, and when there are equal amounts of hours of daylight and nighttime. For thousands of years, indigenous populations, clans and tribal peoples and even religions have marked the beginning of spring with rituals celebrating the return of warmth, sunshine and new life.

One ancient holiday associated with the Vernal Equinox is Ostara, which is a traditional celebration honoring the Saxon lunar goddess, Eostre.  Different tribal traditions tell the story slightly differently, but the underlying thread is still the same:  Eostre once rescued a wounded bird, whose feathers and wings had become totally frozen by the harsh cold of winter.  Eostre changed her into a hare, enabling her to survive the winter more easily.

The Shiitake Mushroom Logs are Starting to Sprout!

"The mushrooms are coming!"  "The mushrooms are coming!"  I feel a little bit like a cross between Paul Revere and the Nanny in "101 Dalmatians":  both were excited to deliver their message of important news. 

So as not to reiterate the entire post from last January 31, 2011 (discussing the class I attended about growing your own shiitake mushrooms that was held at the Sussex County Fair Grounds) I will just give the highlights for the last year while the shiitake mycelium was devouring the log from the inside.  I had kept the logs in a shaded area up off the ground on two upside-down plastic buckets so that bugs, slugs and mold did not take hold before the mycelium had a chance to spread and to its thing.  Sometime in August, I submerged the logs in a garbage can full of water overnight.  I then replace the logs on the buckets in a less-shady-but-not-too-sunny location on the eastern side of my house - so they got maybe an hour or so of morning sun, and then were in the shade for the rest of the day.   They have not been protected from rain or that freak Halloween snow storm that we were treated to last fall when fully 1/3 of my silver maple was scattered like flotsam all over the yard, the fence, the garden,    ...and on top of my mushroom logs. 

I had been checking them regularly - at least 2-3 times a week with no detectable sign of any change.  I ran into Ian, the mushroom man from Sussex County, at the Slow Food Festival in early February 2012 in Morristown, NJ and he said that as long as the ends of the logs had discernible 'rings' on them, that all was probably moving ahead correctly, and that it could reasonably be another 6-8 months before any mycelium pushed through the bark as a mushroom.  As you can see, much of the bark is covered with tiny 'V' shaped cracks through which the white fruiting body, or mushroom, is emerging.

Now I just have to be patient, let the mushrooms emerge fully and grow to a decent size, and then beat the squirrels to them.  I was thinking about moving the logs inside the garden, but that part of the yard gets a significant amount of sun daily - and I don't want to dry the logs out too fast and wither the remaining mycelium inside.  As you can see, I still have more to learn about this process, and will keep you posted!

Green Blessings as we move into March and count down the days until the Equinox.

"Embracing Menopause" class rescheduled!

This divine picture of Khione found on 
Google from goddessmoms.wordpress.com

The enchanting Snow Goddess, Khione, draped her wintry cloak over NJ today, Saturday, Jan 21, so our "Embracing Menopause" class at The Room Above in Brookside, NJ will be rescheduled! (Update:  New date:  Sat, April 14 at 1:30PM)

This is a wonderful opportunity to slow down and take a few moments to enjoy Khione's sparkling presence with a warming herbal tea!

Give this tea a try on any brisk wintry day:

• ~ 2 Tablespoons grated ginger root
• pinch of cayenne powder
• juice from one fresh lemon
• honey, to taste
• 1-2 star anise pods  (optional, but oh so yummy!)

Grate about 2 tablespoons of fresh ginger root, add to saucepan of boiling water and simmer for about 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and pour into a quart or half gallon-sized mason jar.  Add fresh lemon juice and honey to taste.  Sprinkle barely a pinch of cayenne pepper powder and add 1-2 star anise pods.  Cover with a towel and let steep about 20 minutes.  Strain and enjoy! 

Not only will this tea increase circulation and thoroughly warm the body, it can also be used for sore throats, congestion, colds and flus.

Transition Newton - Building a Sustainable Community

Last night another Steward of our precious, beautiful blue-green Earth - Anne of Degage Gardens - and I attended a viewing and frank discussion of the movie, Call of Life:  Facing the Mass Extinction. 

Hosted by the Transition Newton group, the movie dares to address the accelerating loss of biodiversity that is becoming so severe, scientists are calling it a mass extinction event.  Globally, species are becoming extinct at an astonishing rate - between 1, 000 and 10,000 times faster than normal.  At this rate, nearly half of all plant and animal life could be extinct within the next several decades, threatening the stability of the Earth's entire biosphere.

I liked this group immediately, and am glad to find a like-minded group of ordinary folks who are making the effort to DO something about the alarming rate of biodiversity destruction by forming a transition initiative in their community.  Because they are concerned about the realities of climate change, peak oil and economic instability, these folks are pro-actively seeking solutions to these issues while building a cohesive community.

Transition Initiatives are springing up all across the US, so look for one near your community and get involved.  Make 2012 the year you actively participate!

Just say "NO" to SOPA and PIPA!

Make no mistake about the seriousness of this issue: If SOPA (or PIPA) becomes law, it will sooner or later result in the government seizure and shutdown of virtually all alternative news websites, including sites dedicated to Alternative Holistic Modalities. People should have the right to choose the type of healing modality that addresses their health-care needs, and they should have the right to research different modalities to make the best informed decision for themselves and their family members.  Should SOPA or PIPA be passed, alternative healing sites like Willow Moon Herbals could be censored and seized, and you would find a message like the one above when you tried to access our site for information about medicinal botanicals.

Think this is a fad?  Check out Google, Reddit, NaturalNews, Wikipedia and over 5,000 other sites that have 'gone dark' today in protest of these two draconian bills before Congress.

The Senate is scheduled to vote on this on January 24. Tell them to vote NO to SOPA and PIPA. Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/034682_SOPA_online_piracy_protest.html#ixzz1jqGjPs9x

How to Live an Extra-Ordinary Life

I saw this post on Dr. Mercola's site, and it so inspired me on a slow-starting Monday morning that I wanted to share it with you - I hope that you receive benefit from watching it, and are inspired to act on the suggestions contained within.  The choice IS ours!

Green Blessings!
-Donna







(Here is the link in case the above video does not play correctly for you)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6RQ4WVeLKJI

Inaugural Mid-Atlantic Women's Herbal Conference

Although today was chilly and overcast, it was warm, friendly and inviting at the first annual Mid-Atlantic Women's Herbal Conference in Kempton, PA.  It was a wonderful event attended by about 100 women from various neighboring states.  The many workshops offered were presented by noted herbalists and alternative health care providers with many, many years of plant knowledge:  Deb Soule, Kerry Smith, Kathleen Maier, Jesse Tobin, Susan Hess, Bevin Clare and Charis Lindrooth.  A vendor tent included gorgeous hand-made items, books to be signed by the authors, herbal creams, local herbal lotions and products, gemstones, herbal cordials, delicious local organic food and so much more. 

The spark for the idea for this Conference was when the Women's Herbal Conference moved two hours further north from the usual locaton in Peterborough, NH.  Now nearly an 11 hour drive, it became a virtual impossibility with small children in tow.   Of equal frustration, the SE Women's Herbal Conference held in Black Mountain, NC is also 11 hours away.

Herbal practioners and women who speak for the plants - take note:  October 6, 2012 is the date for next year's event.  Plan for it.  Support it.  Make time for it, and you are making time for your Self.  Invite your Self to spend a day centered on healing and women-centered energy.  You will thank your Self for it!

Chapeau, Ladies!  A lot of hard work and extensive planning made this event such a success!

Ancient Herbal First Aid Kit discovered on Roman-era Shipwreck

In today's online edition of the UK's The Telegraph, there is an article about the discovery of this ancient first aid kit fould on a Roman ship that went down around 130 BCE off the coast of Tuscany.  In a wooden chest containing tin-lined wooden vials they found "pills made of ground-up vegetables, herbs and plants such as celery, onions, carrots, cabbage, alfalfa and chestnuts – all ingredients referred to in classical medical texts."

The article goes on to say: 
"The pills are the oldest known archaeological remains of ancient pharmaceuticals".    

Well, to my mind, botanical-based remedies are not 'pharma'-ceuticals but rather "phyto'-ceuticals,  again underscoring the ancient traditions of healing with medicinal botanicals.

Read the entire article here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/8627715/Roman-era-shipwreck-reveals-ancient-medical-secrets.html


(Many thanks to Gabrielle on the herbstudent@yahoogroups.com for bringing this article to our attention!)

Celebrating the seasonal holiday of Ostara / Happy Vernal Equinox!

The winter of 2010/2011 will be remembered as one of the more icy, snowy, brutal winters that we have experienced here in the northeast in the last several years.  While I generally DO like to experience each of the seasons as the wheel of the year turns, I know that I am not alone when I say that this past winter certainly stretched my patience.  As I type this, I am listening to the muted chirp of the returning birds through my closed windows.  Believe it or not, it was 70+ degrees just a few days ago, and tonight we are expecting an 'icy/wintry' mix. 

So in the spirit of looking forward to Spring, and to celebrate the brave daffodils, hyacinths and tulips that have poked their heads above ground in my yard in an overt challenge to bid winter adieu, I wanted to share the roots of this seasonal earth holiday.

The name Vernal Equinox celebrates the point in the earth's rotation when the daytime and nighttime are of equal length.  Vernal meaning 'spring' and equinox meaning 'equal night'.  Since the Winter Solstice in December, daylight has been increasing by mere minutes a day until today, when the day and night are equal.  The Equinox occurs twice a year exactly six months apart.  In the Fall, it is called Autumnal Equinox representing again when the daytime and nighttime are of equal length - only this time it is because the daylight has been diminishing by mere minutes a day since the Summer Solstice in June.