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Northbound 2.

January 29, 2010March 17, 2018

(Photos courtesy of my sister Leah. See more of her work here.)

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Nothing is quite so delightful as falling in love

Nothing is quite so delightful as falling in love with a wild food that I already knew as a naturalist but didn’t realize was edible.

That happened this week for me with sochan. I knew it grew along our creek, and fell in love with it as a wild food after my first nibble this morning. And then I immediately stumbled upon a GIGANTIC patch while out foraging for something else. 🥳

Looks like we’re feasting on Rudbeckia laciniata (cut leaf sunflower/sochan) this week! I couldn’t be more delighted.

Just 9 spots remain for the 2024 Wild Ireland Retr

Just 9 spots remain for the 2024 Wild Ireland Retreat. I'm humbled by how many of you have heard the call to join us to dig deep into Ireland's history, herbs, and handcrafts next summer.

Our 2024 trip is created for makers, plant lovers, aspiring herbalists, full-hearted dreamers, and other creatives who are longing to refill their cups in Ireland's magical countryside.

We'll journey off the beaten path, away from the tourist circuits of Ireland, in July 2024.

We'll slow our pace and deepen our breath as we visit ancient forests and meet many sacred herbs; be still as we sit with thousand-year oaks; make herbal potions alongside seasoned herbalists; explore traditional spirituality with the wonderful @coiresois; and busy our hands with traditional handicrafts alongside Irish craftspeople.

Our retreat lodging is breathtaking, the food is unparalleled, and the pace is restorative (feel free to forage seaweed and take an evening bath, wander the wooded trails, or meditate at the quiet bay during our stay).

I can't say enough about how this journey and these places have transformed me.

And I can't wait to share it with you.

Want to refill your cup and join me here? Just nine spaces remain. If you'd like to be added to my email list to receive all the delicious details, drop me a DM with your email address then leave me a comment below. I'll be sure to add you.

Tag your favorite adventure buddy in the comments! I can't wait to journey with you.

All mature teens and adults are invited! This life-changing journey will shape your connection with your ancestors, yourself, and those you hold most dear. Join me!

I’m sure I could drive to IKEA and purchase a pe

When it comes to magical, fizzy ferments, my frien

When it comes to magical, fizzy ferments, my friend Dwight @dwightzietlow is an absolute wizard. He taught us how to make his fizzy floral kordialls (probiotic, fermented soft drinks) using edible wildflowers, herbs, and fruits last fall, and we can’t get enough.

After sampling Dwight’s chokecherry kordiall during a recent visit, Lupine and I eagerly awaited chokecherry blooms so we could make our own. We decided to throw in spruce tips as well, for a citrusy-conifer twist. Fermented with wild yeast found on the blooms, this soda will be ready for sipping in less than a week!

To make your own, you just combine fresh water with honey or sugar (about 1/2 gallon of water to 1 cup of sweetener). Add around a cup of freshly picked, unwashed flowers or fruits (ideally something with plenty of surface area for wild yeast, like thistle flowers, goldenrod, dandelion, wild grapes or plums). Add some acidic sumac drupes or half a lemon and a splash of probiotic homemade or purchased probiotic vinegar (mine is homemade yucca vinegar from Dwight). Then just stir well, cover with a cloth, and leave it in a warm room, stirring a couple of times a day while fermentation gets underway.

Within a few days it'll be bubbling and ready to strain and bottle.

You can find lots more reflections on Dwight’s wizardry, more fermentation details, some flavor suggestions, and a proper recipe for making your own floral kordiall in the upcoming issue of Taprooot Magazine @taprootmag, BLUE. I can’t wait to share it with you!

Yesterday I decided to switch out a damaged headli

Yesterday I decided to switch out a damaged headlight assembly in my Prius. I was tired of waiting for someone else to do it, and realized it was my car/my job—not anyone else’s.

It was hard. And frustrating. And dirty. After bloodying my knuckles twice I called down to Sage (working on his own car) who came up to help. (I remind myself now and then that everything my kids can do they’ve learned how to do in the past 15-20 years, so with a little grit, I can learn how, too.)

It wasn’t a simple fix, but we did it! And my satisfaction was off the charts.

Buoyed by the win, Lupine jumped in and she and I swapped out our (worn) winter tires for the summer set. And now my battered little car is ready for another season. 🥳

Yes, it’s easier to ask a more knowledgeable person to do this work—or simply hire it out. But why deny ourselves these basic life skills?

Learn to change your own oil or switch out a tail light, swap tires or use power tools. And teach your kids. It’s scary, it’s hard, but success is downright liberating!

I got home last night at dinner time, soaked throu

I got home last night at dinner time, soaked through with rain, chilled, and exhausted from running four-hours round trip to pick up remodeling supplies (and that was just the drive time).

But between the chickens, the feral garden, and the weeds and trees we had dinner in no time (and for almost no cash or effort). After unloading the car, I threw on a dry hoodie, grabbed a basket and a shovel, and went “shopping” in my yard.

And honestly, I live for this. Not the gardening intensity of starting seeds and hoeing ground and pulling weeds. But these effortless ambles that fill my basket, belly, and soul in equal measure. Nothing else makes me feel so deeply nourished, content, and safe.

For dinner, we enjoyed nettle, chickweed, dandelion, & asparagus quiche seasoned with green garlic and bunching onions. I topped it all with a few violet and dandelion flowers & a sprinkling of elm samaras (the flat seed pods pictured in my basket).

Yum.

All that served with a skillet of roasted parsnips.

Yay, spring! (Also double yay for the vintage dresser with the amazing folk art paint job I picked up to transform into a kitchen island. Squee! More on that soon, I promise.)

There's More to Spring than Morels: We might not

There's More to Spring than Morels:

We might not have found any morels yet (nothing new there!), but we're still cooking up one springtime feast after another from the bounty of these hills. And gosh, I do love free, nourishing food. Even if it is mushroom-less.

Dinner last night/Lunch today: pureed nettle soup made with foraged nettles, ramps, Virginia waterleaf, watercress, cow parsnip, and garlic mustard; a few potatoes from the coop, plus homemade bone broth and a splash of homemade vinegar; flatbread cheese melts made with fresh foraged chickweed, cheese & yum yum sauce from the local Amish dent & bent, plus some sprouted, wholegrain flatbreads gifted to us by a kind neighbor.

Total meal cost for our family of 5: around $3. Plus we got an excellent walk in before dinnertime, scrounging up fresh greens to throw in the pot. And nutritionally, it's off the charts.

Gosh, I do love springtime.

Big news! My dear friends @wildroutesireland and I

Big news! My dear friends @wildroutesireland and I are hosting another Wild Ireland Retreat - coming up in just over a year (summer '24). And registration opens today!

Our 2022 Wild Ireland Herbal Retreat was an incredible journey, and we're taking that trip one step further by incorporating new Irish makers and crafts in our journey.

Our 2024 trip is created for makers, plant lovers, aspiring herbalists, and other creatives who are longing to refill their cups in Ireland's magical countryside.

Our retreat will take place off the beaten path and far from the tourist circuits of Ireland, in July 2024. We'll slow our pace as we visit ancient sacred sites and meet many sacred herbs; be still as we sit with thousand-year oaks; make herbal potions alongside seasoned herbalists; explore traditional spirituality with the wonderful @coiresois; and busy our hands with traditional handicrafts alongside Irish craftspeople.

Our retreat lodging is magical, the food is exquisite, and the pace is restorative (feel free to forage seaweed and take an evening bath, wander the wooded trails, or meditate at the quiet bay during our stay).

I can't say enough about how this journey and these souls have transformed me. And I can't wait to share it with you.

Want to refill your cup and join me here? Registration for adults and mature teens opens this afternoon. If you'd like to be added to my email list to receive all the delicious details, drop me a DM with your email address then leave me a comment below. I'll be sure to add you.

Tag your favorite adventure buddy in the comments! I can't wait to journey with you.

Slán!

Just a little magic at the end of a day filled wit

Just a little magic at the end of a day filled with projects: spring clean up/sanding and refinishing a fab table I thrifted yesterday/Pete pouring footing for the kitchen rebuild). A lot of hard work, but an equal measure of satisfying progress.

Here’s hoping you find some rainbows—literal or figurative—this weekend, too.

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