Ideas and Advice for How To Live a Joyful and Empowered Life.
All Things Empowering – Healing Ourselves & Earth, Self-Sufficiency, Food Forests, Gardening, Art, Road Trips, Preserving, Foraging, Permaculture, Homesteading and More!
In the current times of food shortages, a great way to have a little food security is to plant potatoes. If you happen to have any potatoes from the grocery store that have sprouted, they can be planted. You can even cut the potatoes to where each piece has at least one sprout on each… Continue reading Plant Potatoes For Food Security
We have had a very rainy and windy Fall, Winter and Spring here in western Washington zone 8b. It has been a cooler than usual Spring with less sun so a lot of my plants are blooming later than usual. The blooms are very appreciated. Chives Columbine Columbine Spanish Bluebells Spanish Bluebells Spanish Bluebells Torch… Continue reading What’s Blooming In My Garden May 2022
Chive blossom vinegar is very easy to make and takes your regular vinegar up a notch! Pick your chives on a dry morning after the dew has dried. I picked and used blossoms with stems attached since the stems are flavorful also. Stuff the chives into a sterilized glass jar and pour over your favorite… Continue reading Chive Blossom Vinegar
With the current events that we all know and the food shortages, I thought I would tell you about Jerusalem artichokes, a sunflower that has edible tubers. I had heard about them last year and decided it would be a great addition to my food forest (Food Forest Gardening). So I bought 10 tubers from… Continue reading Jerusalem Artichoke, An Abundant, Beautiful and Delicious Survival Plant
I planted my little apple tree that I started from seed last year. About a week of increasing hours on the porch to adjust it to the weather. I've read that when you start apple trees from seed you never know what kind of apple you will get because the seeds are not true to… Continue reading Food Forest Notes: Apple Tree From Seed Planted / Compost Boxes Extending Flower Beds / Wind Storm, Pine Branches and Paths
I love to propagate plants. It's fun and it saves money because then I don't have to buy them at the store. I also sell plant cuttings on eBay, Mercari and Etsy. If you'd like to see what I sell, here is a link to my Etsy store. I don't have many rooted cuttings yet… Continue reading An Easy Space-Saving Way To Propagate Plant Cuttings
I am blessed to have a couple of old Lilac shrubs that have dark purple flowers growing in my yard. They will be flowering in May so I will be gathering a lot to dry for herbal preparations. The main way that I use dried Lilacs is to make a salve that is anti-aging and… Continue reading How to Dry Lilac for Use in Herbal Preparations or Dried Arrangements
The generous amounts of onion and sage I’ve added to this loaf make it perfect for Thanksgiving stuffing or dressing, and you’ll probably want to have an extra loaf on hand for leftover turkey sandwiches, too. Sourdough Onion & Sage Bread — Comfort du JourSourdough Onion & Sage Bread — Comfort du Jour Rosemary Garlic Artisan… Continue reading Sourdough Onion & Sage Bread — Comfort du Jour
Fire Cider is a traditional herbal remedy used to warm up the body during the cold months and support immunity during cold and flu season. Its striking blend of ginger, garlic, onion, horseradish, chilis and other herbs gives it a potent warming quality, while apple cider vinegar and honey give it a pleasant sweet-sour flavor.… Continue reading DIY Fire Cider
Many of us that live in colder climates where we get freezes in the winter are under the assumption that tomato and pepper plants (bell and hot) are annuals. In warmer climates where it does not freeze they are actually perennials. So the first way to get free tomato and pepper plants for next season… Continue reading Two Ways To Get Free Tomato and Pepper Plants In A Cold Climate For Next Season
Folks, it’s that time of year. Summer. Ew. When mosquitoes lurk around every corner, and poison ivy and thorns seem to meet you at every turn in the woods. In addition to these common skin irritants, I’ve noticed as I’ve aged that prickly plants – not just thorns like raspberries, but even summer squash and… Continue reading DIY Herbal Bite and Sting Salve
If you have poor garden soil you do not need to purchase amendments to make the soil healthier. There is a free way to do this, and it is organic if the rest of your garden is organic. It is a method called chop and drop. All you do is place existing plants leaves and… Continue reading Chop and Drop – A Free Easy Way to Improve Your Garden Soil
Guest post. A wonderful way to use peaches and rosemary from your garden.
Hello, my friends! Ah, I think you guys are really going to enjoy the pictures today. Remember Dad’s aesthetic mint green truck from my birthday post? Turns out it makes a wonderfully eye-catching flower truck! Mom has been growing so many flowers this year that we have too many to display ourselves, so she started… Continue reading In Which We Set Up a Flower Truck
Growing your own food means that you will always know what you are eating, where the food has come from, and that the produce is toxin-free! These days there are so many ways that you can grow your own produce, from caring for a few small pots on your balcony to running a farm or… Continue reading How Much Land Is Needed To Grow A Permaculture Food Forest?
Last weekend, Jim and I went to Long Row Lavender in Wright City, MO. It’s a cute little farm halfway between St. Louis and Columbia where you can pick your own lavender, take a stroll around the farm, and even get breakfast or lunch. We had a great time picking lavender. We got there early… Continue reading Lemon Lavender Scones
Now, while the summer season is in full swing, you should be making plans for your garden over the months to come. You might be thinking about ordering trees and shrubs to plant over the dormant period, buying seeds for winter cover crops, or even buying seeds in for next year. But while you may… Continue reading Tips for Sourcing New Plants For Your Garden in a Sustainable Way
There’s a reason why bread is considered a comfort food…it warms your body like your mother’s warm hug. The humble loaf of bread starts it’s life with such simple instructions yet, cared for in such a way. You create this “spiritual-like” experience from the aroma, wafting in the air. To the emotinal love you put… Continue reading Rosemary Garlic Artisan Bread
I’ve always wanted to grow my own food. While experimenting with and learning how to grow the gateway veggies like tomatoes, carrots, and herbs I came across the concept of “food forests”. Let’s briefly brush over what a food forest is, before I share my list of plants, cost and time involved, and a few… Continue reading Food Forest #1
I am a fan of Rain Country on Youtube. A few days ago my feed on Youtube came up with one of her older videos on making Calendula Soda. I have many Calendulas growing this year 🙂 So I watched the video, then excitedly went to my garden and picked a couple handfuls of Calendula,… Continue reading I Made Calendula Viola Soda!
Hey there! Thanks for visiting my blog. The garden is filled with lots of color, so I thought I’d take advantage of that and create a floral arrangement. Creating an arrangement is fun to do! It is great to be able to wander about the garden, gathering flowers and then being able to create something… Continue reading A summer floral arrangement with pizazz
I am always looking for new ways to use herbs. These summer mocktails or cocktails use herbs with other ingredients and there's also a recipe for mint syrup. Thank you for the wonderful ideas to the blogger that wrote this. I hope my readers enjoy it as much as I did. Combine herbs and juices… Continue reading Summer Mocktails or Cocktails
I had some blueberries I needed to use up so I made Blueberry Basil Jam. I did not can it because it only made around 4 cups and I plan on giving some to my dad. Plus, I'll eat toast with the jam for breakfast for a while. So it's more a refrigerator jam. 4… Continue reading Blueberry Basil Jam
Besides providing compost-rich soil and giving adequate water, a great way to get more flowers, vegetables and fruits from your plants is to deadhead or pick frequently. Deadheading simply means picking off old flowers that are past their prime. When we do not do this, the plant's energy goes into making seeds rather than more… Continue reading How To Get More Flowers, Vegetables and Fruit from your Plants
This is the Nasturtium I'm growing this year. I don't remember the name of the variety, I just picked out a packet at the store that looked pretty. They mound rather than vine. They are so easy to grow. Just plant the seeds in the garden, keep the soil moist and watch them grow. I… Continue reading Nasturtiums Are Edible and Good for Hair Growth
This is a flower arrangement I cut from my garden to attract abundance. If you didn't know, flowers and herbs have symbolic meaning that has been gathered through the ages. To find out what the symbolic meaning is of particular flowers and herbs, you can google it. By making an arrangement of flowers and herbs… Continue reading A Flower Arrangement To Attract Abundance
Before the pandemic hit, I only had a 4x4' garden bed. I was laid off from my job and concerned about food shortages so wanted to start growing a larger garden. I also had health in mind, wanting to grow herbs and produce. In the past I studied herbs and knew many of them have… Continue reading How I Created Raised Garden Beds For Free
A while ago, I wanted to multiply a lot of my plants but didn't want to go to the hassle of propagating cuttings in pots. I'd have to buy more potting soil, fill containers with soil, plant the cuttings, keep the pots watered and finally when the cuttings root, adjust them to a sunnier position,… Continue reading An Easy Way to Multiply Many of Your Garden Plants
Long grass works to tie your tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, peas or anything you need tied to a stake or trellis. You can use 2 or three pieces together to strengthen it. I have found this very convenient and I am more apt to get the job done when the supplies are a few steps away.… Continue reading Natural Tomato (& Other Vining Plant) Ties Found In Your Yard + Photos from My Garden
I wanted to make beer battered fried Sage leaves but didn't have beer so was trying to think of a substitute. Kombucha is fizzy, slightly sweet, but more sour, so I thought maybe it would work, so I gave it a try. I only used about a cup of all-purpose flour then whisked in enough… Continue reading Kombucha Battered Fried Sage Leaves
If you're like me, there's always a few potatoes left in the bag of store-bought potatoes that shrivel and sprout. It's easy to turn these potatoes into many fresh-grown potatoes. Just take each potato and cut into chunks with at least one sprout, then plant in a sunny area with well-drained, amended soil. They do… Continue reading Turn Sprouted Potatoes Into Many Fresh-Grown Potatoes
The daylily plants that I have now have been in my family for many years. My grandma was growing them in her yard when I was a teenager, around 40+ years ago. When I got married in my 20's, I got a few divisions from her large clump and enjoyed them for many years. At… Continue reading Tawny Daylily – Easy To Grow, Beautiful, Edible and More!
Last summer I had one Thyme plant. This season I have four - I started a new plant by dividing the Thyme I had and I bought 3 others. The new 3 are Lemon Thyme, English Thyme and Pizza Thyme. Here are some photos: These all make a tasty tea. Sometimes I drink it on… Continue reading Growing And Using Thyme for Health
Oregano tea you say? I thought that was to season Spaghetti! Seems I'm always referring back to when the pandemic was first taking hold in a lot of my posts. Yes, I am. That period of time and what we went through was a life changer for me. Being laid off for 2-1/2 months, experiencing… Continue reading How to Make Oregano Tea and It’s Health Benefits
Last summer I purchased fresh oregano from the produce department at the grocery store with the intention to start new plants from the sprigs. It was not long after the pandemic had begun and I had decided to do all my shopping online and pick up or have everything delivered, rather than going to the… Continue reading How To Propagate Oregano – It’s Easy!
When I was laid off last year due to the pandemic, I had decided to start a garden. I quickly found out that many other people had this idea because seeds and plants were hard to come by. I had to get creative in getting plants for my garden. I noticed my grocery store had… Continue reading A Less Expensive Way to Get a Few Basil Plants
I don't have a lot of space to start seeds in my home and the last frost date here is usually the first week of April. So a few weeks ago I tried a little experiement and planted some seeds outdoors. I planted Brussels Sprouts, red onion and Asparagus seeds thinking they may do better… Continue reading Start Seeds Earlier Than The Last Frost Outdoors
Pin to Pinterest with this image so you can refer back to it later Last March, I was laid off from my job for 2.5 months due to the pandemic. During this time I began to get back in touch with my passion for gardening and using herbs and flowers. At first, the reason I… Continue reading Homemade Lilac Salve
Growing our own produce is a great way to begin becoming more self-sufficient and eat more healthy. Some of the produce we buy from the grocery store is grown with chemicals that are not good for us and grown a great distance away so by the time we get it, much of the nutritional value… Continue reading How To Propagate Plum Trees With Semi-Hardwood Cuttings
Since the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic I've been on a quest to grow as many fruits, vegetables and herbs as possible for my health, and in case anything happened to our food system. During this quest I found out that Dandelion is highly nutritious. Dandelions are full of antioxidants and boost the immune system… Continue reading Boost Your Immune System With Dandelion Tea
At the beginning of the pandemic, I decided it would be a good idea to grow as much produce as possible. My yard is a blank canvas for the most part. I used to be an avid gardener up until my marriage ended 12 years ago. Six of those 12 years I lived in an… Continue reading Food Forest Update: Tomato Plants from Slices, Herb Cuttings, Potato Plants from Potatoes and More!
I am in the United States and over the past few days I've felt very dis-empowered. Covid19 taking more and more lives every day. President Trump claiming he has total power and re-opening America very soon. Watching news constantly to try and find out what I need to plan for. President Trump thankfully putting the… Continue reading Taking Charge Of Our Own Lives During The Pandemic
The other day I looked out my kitchen window and noticed the dandelions blooming. At first I thought "great, time to figure out how to get a mower". But for some reason a memory came to me of years ago frying dandelion flower buds in butter and them tasting like mushrooms. I had also made… Continue reading Dandelion Salad
Yesterday on Youtube I found a very inspiring woman that lives in Ireland. Sixteen years ago she purchased a large piece of property that was all grassy field. She purchased this property to prove to people what one woman can do to help the earth's health. She was not happy that Ireland was taking down… Continue reading Bealtaine Cottage, An Inspiration For A Healthier World
As I've been transitioning into the stay-home order here in Washington state, I've been doing all the normal things I'd do on my days off from work, but I've also been watching a ton of Youtube. Everything I watch on Youtube is something I want to learn - either some new skill or things about… Continue reading Food Forest Gardening
My daughter Shauna and I were having a conversation about yoga last night which reminded me of Tao - the 96 year old that does yoga and has started ballroom dancing, so I showed her the video on Youtube, which brought tears to her eyes because Tao has such a beautiful spirit and is living… Continue reading Mother-Daughter Time – Gardening and Inspiration to Live Life to the Fullest
Ideas and Advice for How To Live a Joyful and Empowered Life. 