Vermicompost on a Small Scale

Vermicompost is an excellent way to add a balanced nutrient boost to almost any garden on any scale. On the farm, I created my seeding and growing mix for my greenhouse with vermicompost. However, this can be done on a small scale as well for a home garden or container gardening. Christy Hansen has been vermicomposting on a very small scale for several years for her container gardens. Here is a synopsis of her method. Her full article can be found on my Buy Me a Coffee page.

SUPPLIES: 10 - 20 gallon sturdy storage tote, window screen, E6000 glue, carbon bedding.

TOOLS: drill, scissors, ¼ inch drill bit

Construction

1) Towards the top of the bin, drill holes about 3 inches apart.

2) Glue window screen over the holes with E6000 or similar glue

3) Drill a few drainage holes in the bottom of the bin

Set Up

1) Shred your carbon based bedding and mix well. This can be cardboard, newspaper, packing paper, egg cartons, coconut coir, etc

2) Soak the bedding for an hour or two, then drain completely.

3) Add a small amount of shredded vegetable scraps and mix well

4) Add worms

Monitor and Feed Occasionally

1) Cover the worm bin when it is not being fed.

2) Feed about 1 pound of shredded vegetable scraps weekly, or as needed.

3) When the compost is ready to use, zones can be created with fresh scraps in one section and the ready to use compost in the other. The worms will mostly move towards the fresh food.

To start vermicomposting this month, check out Christy’s article by clicking on the button.

New Starts and Renewal

This time of the year is an ideal time to assess, reset, and renew. For me, this takes the form of assessing my progress on cherished goals and ambitions so that I can pinpoint areas that need tweaks and adjustments. It also means facing the Phoenix’s fire occasionally and completely remaking a life that is not working or has come crashing down.

Most people will face the Phoenix’s fire at some point in their lives, but it takes courage to walk through the fire and come out on the other side stronger and more vibrant. This can be true on every level - personal, family, community, societal, or global. And right now there seems to be an abundance of fires to face and walk through.

I’ve certainly had my share of dumpster fires in my life. When it happens, I start with a time of solitude and spiritual retreat. I go deep into my soul and heart and decide what I really want going forward. Then I start working with a framework to create a story of what I want my life to look like. I focus most of my attention on those areas where I am not happy. I use my framework to create as complete of a picture as possible for what I want my life to look like in the future. I then reverse engineer my life back to the present moment so I can plan the habits that I would need to create right now to create my vision of the future.

So, very briefly, here are the tools that I use:

Step one: Creative self-reflection. This ca take the form of journaling, art, doodling, play with color or natural finds, finger painting, or any other creative activity that unlocks the subconscious. Just note what comes up and how you are feeling on a scale of 1 to 5. 1 is everything is running smoothly. 5 is my life is a dumpster fire. The higher the number, the more you need the Phoenix’s fire. A lower number indicates that only minor tweaks are needed.

Step two: Look at six categories of your life and rate them on the above scale. The categories I use are health, spiritual, relationships, financial/career, purpose, personal/joy. The categories that the highest number need the most work at this time.

Step three: Decide what you want each category to look like in five years. The categories with the highest numbers need the greatest change in your life, or at least the most focus. Take your goals, dreams, and changes and create a story of your ideal life. Do this in the way that works bet for you. I write, but it can be artwork, audio, vision boards, or some other idea.

Step four: Reverse engineer your life to the present moment and to the tiny changes or habits that have a good chance of heading you in the direction that you want to go.

With this process in mind along with the purpose of this newsletter (to promote empowered resiliency and sustainability) I will be taking the next month to put together some tools for you. Some of what I am working on are planners and journals, and micro practices for small spaces. I am still working on the exact form and delivery method. I’ll give an update in the next newsletter. The other piece that I’m adding to my plans is a permaculture certification so that I can better serve the communities around me.

Here are some of the resources that I have found useful:

Lifebook by Jon and Missy Butcher

Atomic Habits by James Clear

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

The Rising of the Phoenix

This is an old story. It happened many lifetimes ago. Or, did it happen yesterday. Or, maybe I saw it in a vision of tomorrow. I'm sorry, I just can't remember any more, and maybe it really doesn't matter. After all, it is just a story, in all its glory. Just the conjured illusions from the mind of a fool.

We could actually start this story at any point, but let's start on a day that we find Feoni Knicks in the kitchen of the mansion peeling potatoes. It was a big basket of potatoes full of beautiful goldens and reds that she was carefully peeling for the evening's feast. As she peeled the beautiful roots, she gently sang of the chickens and pigs that were in the yard behind her house.

As she sang, the peels dropped into the bucket under the table and she plopped the spud into the kettle of water on the table. When she came to a growing eye, she peeled extra deep around that eye and sang of the gardens in the village. And so the afternoon of this poor kitchen maid went. She peeled, washed, and cooked. Finally, the feast was ready and set before the Baron's family in the manor as expected.

When the family was done eating, there was much left on the table. More left than they ate. "Throw it in the pit", the Baron scoffed, as he went off to scheme how he would cheat his way into more power. What story could he fabricate to legitimize the theft of the neighboring land. So, she quietly took the excess food back to the kitchen. Carefully and quietly, she packed the food and put it in her old cart with her tools. Beside the food, she put the peels, then the other kitchen scraps.

Old Feoni Knicks slowly wheeled her old cart past the pit and tossed in the kitchen scraps. She pushed the cart past the Baron's children taunting a poor peasant girl who was picking up twigs for the cooking fire. "Ye all run along home now!" she called. "There's a storm brewing on the water."

The rest of the story and the print are available on Buy Me a Coffee.

And for a little bit more

Events

December 1 - Advent begins

December 3 - Make a Gift Day

December 5 - World Soil Day

December 10 - Human Rights Day

December 15 - Full Moon

December 21 - Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere

December 25 - Christmas, Hanuka Begins

December 26 - Kwanzaa

December 30 - New Moon, Next Newsletter

December 31 - New Year’s Eve

Powerful Comfrey

Comfrey, Symphytum officinale, has long been a staple in the herbalist’s garden. This perennial herbs has been mentioned in materia medica texts in Europe and Asia for over 2000 years for use on both people and animals. This powerful healer was carried on the battlefields of the Greeks and Romans, and was grown in the monastery gardens. It was found in most ancient European apothecaries under a number of names depending on how transparent the herbalist was. Often it was listed under the botanical name, but it was also known as knitbone, boneset, black root, and bruise wort.

Comfrey has a number of traditional uses, but only the topical or external uses are considered to be safe enough for use. Even then, comfrey should be used sparingly. The common names of comfrey give an indication of many of the ways that it was used. It was used to treat broken bones, sprains, and strains. It was used for pain relief in joints and muscles. It was often used to treat bruises and blunt force injuries.

Comfrey was considered to be a wound healer by many of the ancient herbalists from Pliny and Descerides to Culpeper. It was used on shallow wounds, skin irritations, bites, burns, and rashes. The boiled root was used to bind wounds.

There have been a number of clinical studies on comfrey that indicate the effectiveness of many of these traditional uses. It has been shown to reduce muscle and joint pain inflammation, and swelling. It has been shown to encourage cell growth and regeneration. It has clinical evidence of effectiveness for sprains, strains, arthritis, ligament stress, and fractures. It’s healing properties have also been shown to be helpful for minor skin conditions.

There are, however, a number of cautions associated with comfrey. First, never take comfrey internally. It contains toxins that can be damaging to the liver. Only use comfrey topically in low concentrations. Comfrey should not be used on deep wounds or puncture wounds as it can cause toe surface to heal faster than the deep parts of the wound. Pregnant people and children should not use comfrey at all. Everyone else should consult a medical provider before using comfrey.

Comfrey is considered to be an easy plant to grow for most gardeners. This member of the borage family likes the moist soil near rivers, lakes, and ponds. It establishes easily and is hard to get rid of once it is established in an area. The roots are usually harvested for medicinal uses, but even small fragment left behind can grow a new plant. The leaves are also considered to be medicinal, but there were frequently used as animal fodder and fertilizer in the annual garden.

This is one of the plants that I would include in a resiliency garden if I had the space. This does take a bit of a caution. Only plant it where you want it to stay. It may be best to contain it with a container or a raised bed.

For an article on the energetic properties of comfrey, check out the article on my website:

Here is how I use comfrey. This recipe is on my Buy Me a Coffee page.

The Phoenix

As we are coming up on the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, this is a good time to explore the meaning of the Phoenix.

The Phoenix is an ancient myth that dates back beyond 1500 BC. While there are a number of similar legends world wide, the legends most clearly associated with the Phoenix come from ancient Egypt or the Middle East. Essentially, the Phoenix is an immortal spirit that lives each life for 500 years. At the end of that 500 year life, he bird creates a huge nest of aromatic woods and sets the nest on fire. As the nest and the Phoenix are burned to ash, the Phoenix is purified. It is then reborn from the ashes of the fire renewed and stronger.

As you would guess, the legend points towards the symbolic meaning of the Phoenix. It is a symbol of rebirth and renewal. It is the transformative power of hope and courage. Like the Phoenix rising from the ashes, we too can get back up when our world crashes down around us. The Phoenix is a call to get up and rise out of the ashes to create a brighter and more vibrant future.

This speaks directly to the name of this newsletter on several levels.

First: As a global society, we are facing serious environmental and climate challenges and an increasing frequency of disasters. Solutions need to be found and can be found for these challenges if we all play a part in the solution. My focus with this newsletter is to help all of us find simple strategies that can be employed in every day life that make small differences towards addressing these challenges.

Second: On a personal level, the more skills and ideas that you can develop, the stronger and more resilient you become in your life, and the more able you become to bounce back from the challenges that will pop into your life.

Third: The amazing thing is that building your resiliency skills doesn’t just make you stronger. It makes your community stronger. And, everyone taking small steps does make a difference in addressing the global challenges.

More needs to be done, but small changes do tend to compound when everyone learns the skills of the Phoenix.

Here is the longer article on the Phoenix on my website

The original drawing, The Phoenix, is not for sale, however, the print and story are available from my Buy Me a Coffee page.

And I'm Not The Only One

Here are a couple of places to find more information.

I am currently working through Attomic Habits by James Clear. This is a good how-to for creating positive change in your life.

Some one I'm following:

Andrew Millison from Oregon State University has an excellent YouTube channel covering topics of permaculture. I am learning as much as I can from his content until I am able to join the certification program. https://www.youtube.com/@amillison