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The Sacred Gardener
Golden Lake, Ontario
 
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Our Divine Cultural Inheritance

Our Divine Cultural Inheritance

By Steven Martyn January 3, 2020 January 13, 2020

Steven Martyn in front of a stack-wall cob earthship, speaking about the need to revive the sacred foundation of our culture through the practice of traditional skills.

A short film by Steve Turliuk

 

Spells, Pumpkins and the Deep Mystery of Being
Echinacea, Snake Root and Snake Oil
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sacredgardener

Seeding earth wisdom since 1989. Home of The Sacred Gardener School.

The Sacred Gardener
Delicate peach 🍑 blossoms blooming in the green Delicate peach 🍑 blossoms blooming in the greenhouse. Where we are, it’s too cold for them to make it through the winter outside. This tree is in a large pot that will move outside after the risk of frost in June, coming back in in September. This fruit will be ready to eat late July. #northerngardening #zone3 #greenhouse #peach #stonefruits
We've got some exciting news to share. We’re c We've got some exciting news to share. We’re creating a Patreon membership, which will launch on Spring Equinox! We always knew because of the physical participation of the students on the land, for the school to be sustainable on the land, we could only serve a limited number of people each year. The School all happened very organically and solidified that we were doing something important and real with those who have come. Our purpose has always been to further disseminate the ancient ways and means of seeing the Earth and working with Her in an intimate and nurturing way, as all our ancestors did (if we go back far enough), so that we can come back into harmony with Her, with each other and with ourselves. Here's an idea of what we'll share: Information about the 100+ wild herbs and food plants, shared through Steven's exceptional, diverse knowledge and eloquence. How to identify, cultivate, when to harvest, how to preserve and store plants for food and medicine. Steven has a rare perspective someone who grows food and herbs, but who started off as a forager working ethically with our wild neighbours. He applies this philosophy to all he does. Megan will share how she makes delicious meals, ferments, condiments, spice blends and more with wild and cultivated plants, along with other unique things, such as bioregional incense. We’ll be offering three tiers of membership. $10 - 2 new video/audio/written deliveries a month, with access to full content library. Some subjects include: Steven talking about herbs, gardening, wild food and medicine, spirituality and philosophy and Megan’s detailed posts about food prep and storage, fermentation, cooking and craft (like incense making). $20- All of the previous, plus a monthly live zoom call with Steven, discounts on ecourses and books. $60- All of the previous offerings, plus a monthly delivery of goodies created with love here on the farm. Limited to 10 people. (Let us know if you’d like to be on the list to be notified on when this is available to sign up). We’re looking forward to this new journey with you. With love for the wild, and all that is, Megan and Steven
"The protogenic energies of mythology are not just "The protogenic energies of mythology are not just living in a mythic age, but are still present now, in the land; from the Earth's geomantic layout, to the little things, like flowers, bugs and mushrooms. They all embody mythology and gave birth to this physical world. For example, on a mythological level, flowers have long been associated with the magic of fertility and the feminine, as symbolized in the flower's vulva-like shape and its fruit-bearing ability. Flowers are seen as the peak expression of beauty, life and sensuality. As it turns out, this intuitive mythical understanding reflects a deeper reality we are only just coming to understand scientifically. By Earth time, flowers evolved only recently (about 130 million years ago). But it was only through these flowering plants and their fruits, that early animals (our first mammalian ancestors) received enough special nutrients, hormones, bioflavonoids and other building blocks to make our relatively big brains. These nutrients were building blocks that were absent in non-flowering plants, but when available became the agents to evolve "higher" brain function. They evolved us. So when we look at a flower and think it is beautiful, and feel love for it, it is because it's based on our ancient intimate relationship with them; we co-evolved with them. They gave birth to our consciousness, which enables us to wonder at their beauty! When we stare at flowers in wonder and awe, we're looking at our creator and the source of our consciousness. This reflection is equally true of the stars or anything else in this world from which we can generate a feel of awe and wonder. We know in our bones that we have an ancient relationship with these beings that surround us in nature. And indeed, we are kin. ~ Steven Martyn, "Sacred Gardening: Seeds for the Reemergence of Co-Ceative Agriculture" #sacredgardening #cocreative #cocreate #angiosperms #floweringplants #évolution
Our winter greens bed in the greenhouse has some a Our winter greens bed in the greenhouse has some abundant kale and sorrel! We transplanted these plants in from the garden in the fall, so they were already well on their way. Kale in particular is incredible for it’s ability to just keep growing. Such a treat to have fresh greens this time of year! #greenhouse #greens #northerngardening #wintergardening #kale #saladgreens #sustainable
I think many of us crave heavier foods this time o I think many of us crave heavier foods this time of year. Eating those foods are what got us through the winter for thousands of years. Our diet changes from light summer fare of salads, fresh fruit and green vegetables; to cooked, sweet-fatty-starchy foods like meat, squash, beets, carrots, parsnips and potatoes. One way to balance this change is another natural winter activity, drinking lots of herbal tea. While we are no longer part of the @algonquinteacompany , who sells the sweetfern tonic blend, we have the bulk herbs we grow and pick in the wild, and sure enough I find myself recreating Sweetfern Tonic as a winter tea, twenty years after creating the blend for the tea company. The roots in this blend stimulate and balance our organs of digestion and elimination when they are stressed with less fresh food and more fats. The trace minerals and bitter medicine in the roots of Dandelion, Burdock, Yellowdock and Echinacea, help fill in the gaps in our diet created by the lack of fresh greens. The roots help our immune system, oxygenate our blood and tone our organs of elimination. Sweetfern herself is warm and spicy, further aiding with our circulation and digestion. Sweetfern is also a bit like sage or rosemary, banishing congestion and negativity, which is helpful in the dark months of winter. Sweetfern enables with the assimilation of our food, which is important in the winter when our food is less diverse and fresh. She is a powerful antioxidant that will help clear the inevitable build up of toxins we accumulate in the winter. For most us, our heavier diet and being indoors results in more absorption of toxins in the winter. Clover blossom and leaf are a major part of the blend that enriches and help to purify the toxins from our blood. Clover is also very synergistic and magnifies the medicine of other shyer plants like Yellowdock and Burdock. Clover’s other half providing the smooth richness of taste in this blend is Raspberry. Raspberry vines protect and feed the earth where they grow, as they do for our bodies when we take them in. They are very high in vitamins, minerals and mild hormones that tones and relaxes our winter-tight mind and muscles.
A close up of one of the holes we left as part of A close up of one of the holes we left as part of the floor, from the time when the floor was sugar maple trees that were tapped for syrup. Each hole has this darker streaking around it. #woodfloor #handmade #sugarmaple #timberframe #laboroflove
Harriet Tubman, an Unsung Naturalist, Used Owl Cal Harriet Tubman, an Unsung Naturalist, Used Owl Calls as a Signal on the Underground Railroad Harriet Tubman spent much of her young life in close contact with the natural world. Likely born in 1822, she grew up in an area full of wetlands, swamps, and upland forests, giving her the skills she used expertly in her own quest for freedom in 1849. Her parents were enslaved, and Tubman’s owners rented her out to neighbors as a domestic servant as early as age five. At seven, she was hired out again, and her duties included walking into wet marshes to check muskrat traps. Tubman also worked as a field hand, in timber fields with her father and brothers on the north side of the Blackwater River, and at wharves in the area. All of this helped when, later, Tubman made 13 trips back to Maryland between 1850 and 1860 to guide people to freedom. The abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison dubbed Tubman “Moses.” “It was in those timber fields where she learned the skills necessary to be a successful conductor on the Underground Railroad,” Crenshaw explains, “including how to read the landscape, how to be comfortable in the woods, how to navigate and use the sounds that were natural in Dorchester County at the time.” Being able to travel and navigate was paramount for people risking their lives for freedom, and that's why it helped that Tubman was an astronomer, too, says Eola Dance, former coordinator for the National Park Service’s Network to Freedom program. Like other freedom seekers, Tubman used the North Star and the Big Dipper to orient herself. Botany proved another necessary skill; people used plants for food and other survival needs. “Whether it was using certain plant life to quiet babies, or it could be relieving pain or cleaning wounds, this was the type of knowledge that Tubman had,” Dance says. Travelers along the Underground Railroad would have also looked for vegetables such as okra, tomatoes, collard greens, and trapped animals, such as muskrats, she notes. Full article here: https://www.audubon.org/news/harriet-tubman-unsung-naturalist-used-owl-calls-signal-underground-railroad #blackhistorymonth #blackhistory #blacknaturalists #harriettubman
The floor in our timber frame guest house is in! N The floor in our timber frame guest house is in! Next is sanding and sealing. This job took alot longer than a job that would have been done with conventionally made flooring; where the lengths, widths and quality of the wood would be the same. This wood is sugar maple. The trees were hand cut when the Madawaska Forest Garden was created in Whitney, 25 years ago. They were cut into boards by a friend’s mill. They’ve been moved a couple of times and have been sitting in our barn for 20. Now it’s time for a new life, here as this magnificent variable beauty. Steven tapped these trees for syrup. There’s a few holes from drilling into the trees we’ve left as part of the floor, remembering. #woodfloor #timberframe #sugarmaple #sacredgardenerschool #handmade

sacredgardener

Seeding earth wisdom since 1989. Home of The Sacred Gardener School.

The Sacred Gardener
Delicate peach 🍑 blossoms blooming in the green Delicate peach 🍑 blossoms blooming in the greenhouse. Where we are, it’s too cold for them to make it through the winter outside. This tree is in a large pot that will move outside after the risk of frost in June, coming back in in September. This fruit will be ready to eat late July. #northerngardening #zone3 #greenhouse #peach #stonefruits
We've got some exciting news to share. We’re c We've got some exciting news to share. We’re creating a Patreon membership, which will launch on Spring Equinox! We always knew because of the physical participation of the students on the land, for the school to be sustainable on the land, we could only serve a limited number of people each year. The School all happened very organically and solidified that we were doing something important and real with those who have come. Our purpose has always been to further disseminate the ancient ways and means of seeing the Earth and working with Her in an intimate and nurturing way, as all our ancestors did (if we go back far enough), so that we can come back into harmony with Her, with each other and with ourselves. Here's an idea of what we'll share: Information about the 100+ wild herbs and food plants, shared through Steven's exceptional, diverse knowledge and eloquence. How to identify, cultivate, when to harvest, how to preserve and store plants for food and medicine. Steven has a rare perspective someone who grows food and herbs, but who started off as a forager working ethically with our wild neighbours. He applies this philosophy to all he does. Megan will share how she makes delicious meals, ferments, condiments, spice blends and more with wild and cultivated plants, along with other unique things, such as bioregional incense. We’ll be offering three tiers of membership. $10 - 2 new video/audio/written deliveries a month, with access to full content library. Some subjects include: Steven talking about herbs, gardening, wild food and medicine, spirituality and philosophy and Megan’s detailed posts about food prep and storage, fermentation, cooking and craft (like incense making). $20- All of the previous, plus a monthly live zoom call with Steven, discounts on ecourses and books. $60- All of the previous offerings, plus a monthly delivery of goodies created with love here on the farm. Limited to 10 people. (Let us know if you’d like to be on the list to be notified on when this is available to sign up). We’re looking forward to this new journey with you. With love for the wild, and all that is, Megan and Steven
"The protogenic energies of mythology are not just "The protogenic energies of mythology are not just living in a mythic age, but are still present now, in the land; from the Earth's geomantic layout, to the little things, like flowers, bugs and mushrooms. They all embody mythology and gave birth to this physical world. For example, on a mythological level, flowers have long been associated with the magic of fertility and the feminine, as symbolized in the flower's vulva-like shape and its fruit-bearing ability. Flowers are seen as the peak expression of beauty, life and sensuality. As it turns out, this intuitive mythical understanding reflects a deeper reality we are only just coming to understand scientifically. By Earth time, flowers evolved only recently (about 130 million years ago). But it was only through these flowering plants and their fruits, that early animals (our first mammalian ancestors) received enough special nutrients, hormones, bioflavonoids and other building blocks to make our relatively big brains. These nutrients were building blocks that were absent in non-flowering plants, but when available became the agents to evolve "higher" brain function. They evolved us. So when we look at a flower and think it is beautiful, and feel love for it, it is because it's based on our ancient intimate relationship with them; we co-evolved with them. They gave birth to our consciousness, which enables us to wonder at their beauty! When we stare at flowers in wonder and awe, we're looking at our creator and the source of our consciousness. This reflection is equally true of the stars or anything else in this world from which we can generate a feel of awe and wonder. We know in our bones that we have an ancient relationship with these beings that surround us in nature. And indeed, we are kin. ~ Steven Martyn, "Sacred Gardening: Seeds for the Reemergence of Co-Ceative Agriculture" #sacredgardening #cocreative #cocreate #angiosperms #floweringplants #évolution
Our winter greens bed in the greenhouse has some a Our winter greens bed in the greenhouse has some abundant kale and sorrel! We transplanted these plants in from the garden in the fall, so they were already well on their way. Kale in particular is incredible for it’s ability to just keep growing. Such a treat to have fresh greens this time of year! #greenhouse #greens #northerngardening #wintergardening #kale #saladgreens #sustainable
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