Zenais Buck wrote:OK, just throwing this out there (which I rarely do). For some reason, I have been thinking about this post, and keep thinking "Usnea". I usually don't get these strong feelings, so I don't know if maybe info stored deep in my brain is resurfacing, or what. I don't use Usnea often, and have not used it for this issue... but... maybe?
Here is a link from Susan Weed; see what you think:
It grows profusely here; if you send my your mailing address I will drop some fresh usnea in a mailing envelope and send you some (you can make a tincture, easy). If you are squeamish about strangers sending herbs (as I sometimes am) I can heartily endorse Mountain Rose Herbs as a source. ~ Z
You are so kind for the offer. As it turns out, I am fixin' to put in an order for MRH so I will put that in my order. Much gratitude to you!
That is good to hear! Oregano is so good for so many things. I deal with this on and off; once you get it, it is hard to get clear. You really have to be tenacious. I know when I did a specialized diet it got much better, and then I fell off the wagon. When I get back on my food routine I will try the oregano as well. Best wishes!
I have read that you have to be tenacious! I have actually had a patch on my lower back since at least last summer but for whatever reason just ignored it since it wasn't spreading. Now I know better and when you know better you do better, right?!
Zenais Buck wrote:My midwife always advised to wash with Selsun Blue shampoo... definitely NOT an herbal remedy. She said wash, then let sit for 5-10 minutes and rinse, and it will eventually go away. the shampoo had to be the 'original' kind, with selenium sulfide.
I think that while topical anti-fungals are necessary, ultimately you have to balance the body so that they have less of a niche.
Thanks for the reply! I have actually heard that advice from several people. Since I posted I have started mixing oil of oregano with aloe (in addition to the things in the OP) and it seems to be working well!
Does anyone have personal experience with tinea versicolor? I am almost positive that it is what I have on my torso. Unfortunately, I just figured out this morning that that is what it probably is. I have been treating it topically with calendula ointment, comfrey oil and hydrocortisone (because I was getting desperate) but even with the hydrocortisone it is not really going away. After my husband suggested that it might be fungal I did a search for fungal infections on the torso and tinea versicolor came up. Mine sure looks like it. So, we've started putting the OTC medicine for althete's foot and ringworm (can't remember the name of the medicine) just this morning. I just took some calendula tincture plus raw garlic/honey mixture and some MSM (sulfur) because I read on a comment that sulfur can help (they were saying topically but MSM is something that we take internally for dental health). I don't even know if MSM is the "right" kind of sulfur for this. All I know is that I am itchy and I really want to help my body combat this infection. So thank you in advance for any advice that you can offer.
I hate Kale but I love it in a Hot Pot. Garlic mustard can be very strong but boiling in spicy stock takes alot of the bitter bite out of it. At the same time it adds flavor to the boiling liquid.
I wish that I was a tad closer and my kids were a little older because I would soooooo take this. I am acquainted with some of the teachers from local workshops. Really great guys.
From the webpage:
A Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) for only $500
Permaculture design is decision making, critical thinking, and problem solving protocols based on the patterns expressed in nature. It joins high science and appropriate technology to meet local needs in all aspects of society from economy to waste management, food and water security to city planning and education.
SoMI Permaculture Mixer at Dawn Farm
On the second Saturday of each month we’ll gather in Ann Arbor to learn the skills needed to bring our communities into a local sustainable future. We will meet for 4 hours per session over two years, to fulfill the 72 hours required for the PDC. This PDC is designed for Michigan educators, parents, and community organizers, with SCECHs & undergrad/grad credits available but this course is perfect for anyone interested in the potential that permaculture has to offer.
About the Teaching Team
PDC Teacher Jesse Tack foraging for applesJesse Tack took his PDC in Detroit in 2011 with Larry Santoyo and Keith Johnson, his teacher training with Peter Bane and Sandy Cruz in 2014, and runs the local sustainable group – Abundant Michigan, Permaculture Ypsilanti (AMPY) — actively moving towards local security for food and water systems. Partnering with Dawn Farm, AMPY has planted 1500 trees for fuel, food, and fiber resources for our local economy. Jesse has been an educator for 15 years, teaching guitar to individuals from 5-80 years old, small ensembles, rock bands, group and individual music therapy.
PDCE teacher Milton Dixon teaching during his teacher trainingC. Milton Dixon is a permaculturist, musician, forager, and web designer. He recently relocated to Ann Arbor from Chicago and is now working to sync with the rhythms of permaculture in his new location. He is a professional permaculture educator and designer, having taken a PDC with Midwest Permaculture in 2009 and a teacher training course with David Jacke in 2010. He has taught PDCs with Midwest Permaculture and The Permaculture Project at Kinstone Circle, is codesigner of greatlakespermacultureportal.com and organizes the Washtenaw Permaculture Meetup.
Additional teachers will include Zeal Chen, Nathan Ayers, Bridget O’Brien, and Kristin Kaul.
Our PDC Includes
observation skills
ethics and the basis of ecological design
permaculture principles
indicators of sustainability, and how to use them
natural patterns as a design tool
the permaculture design process
the water cycle
catching and storage water
trees and their many roles
designing plant communities
biomimicry
methods of green and natural building
designing for disaster
population, energy use, and Peak Oil
appropriate technologies
community dynamics
city repair
designing for urban, suburban, or rural situations
money, finance, and local currency networks
permaculture in education
green business guilds and networks
building social capital
a design project – design curriculum, your home, site, or other project
PDC teachers Milton, Jesse, & Zeal participate in the AMPY GSC
Textbook
We will use Earth Users Guide to Permaculture by Rosemarry Morrow as the course textbook, the cost of which is not included in the price of the course. Please have your textbook by the start of the course. Jeannine Palms has offered to coordinate a bulk buy through Crazy Wisdom Bookstore, email her at jeannine@wetmeadow.org for more information.
Tentative Schedule of Course Dates
January 10, 2015
February 14, 2015
March 14, 2015
April 11, 2015
May – Off for end of school year
June 13, 2015 – May be moved to coincide with SEMIS Summer Institute, Date TBA
July 10, 2015
August 8, 2015
September 12, 2015
October 10, 2015
November 14, 2015
December 12, 2015
January 9, 2016
February 13, 2016
March 12, 2016
April 9, 2016
May – – Off for end of school year
June 11, 2016 – May be moved to coincide with SEMIS Summer Institute, Date TBA
July 9, 2016
August 13, 2016
September 10, 2016
October 8, 2016
Classes will be recorded and available to students who miss a session for review and so that they can come to the next class prepared and ready for the next topic.
My 9 year old son was experiencing some pain in one of his molars that lacks structural integrity (not cavities; just malformed). The dentist said "root canal" and I was freaking out inside. After starting elecampane root tincture the pain quickly disappeared and has not returned. I read in one source (really a handout of some sort that I acquired from a natural/health food store a while back) that elecampagne root "lessens tooth decay and firms gums". It does seem to do that (we will check with the dentist again to be sure) but no other source that I've found reiterates what that handout says about elecampane root and dental health.
Do you know of any sources that suggest this connection? TIA.
Expanding my sprouting repertoire. I've got some new seeds to sprout: millet, amaranth, lentils, flax. Continuing with the mung, adzuki, alfalfa and chia.
Greetings! Do you think that there is a difference in nutritional value if you grind the seeds up before soaking them? I know that technically the seeds won't sprout if you grind them up first but I don't have a high speed blender like a Blendtec to grind up the slimy, soaked seeds. I've read that the nutrition in the seeds is bio-available after just a soaking (http://symplefoods.com/sprouting-flax-from-appendix-a-the-wide-world-of-sprouts-list-of-sprout-able-seeds-kitchen-sink-farming-out-soon/), I wonder about the nutritional value of grinding before soaking. TIA.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this idea in "battling" this opportunistic plant. Are there any other areas that have this idea of finding creative uses for garlic mustard on a large scale?
We just moved to Oakland/Macomb county line, north of Detroit, from Toledo, Ohio. New job for hubby. I'm excited that there are quite a few Permaculture groups here in SE Michigan. I have been able to go to several in-person workshops (or skillshares) hosted by the various Permaculture groups that I participate in. In November, I attended two different workshops: a rocket stove workshop as well as a “making hard cider” demonstration. In December, I attended a meeting wherein three presenters presented their craft in short demonstrations: carving wooden spoons, making paper and wool felting.
It's really good to be in community with local permies.
I did these a few years ago and it worked!!! I seriously live a very low stress life now. I love it! Here is the link but I've copied and pasted the main text below. http://www.becomingminimalist.com/declutter-your-schedule/ by Mike Burns
“Time is a created thing. To say ‘I don’t have time,’ is like saying, ‘I don’t want to’.” ―Lao Tzu
15 years ago, I was overwhelmed.
I was working a ton of hours, trying to establish myself in my career. I was juggling relationships with my wife, my 6 kids, neighbors, friends, family, and co-workers. My schedule was pretty cluttered. There was a lot of stuff going on, and not enough time to do it.
My intentions were good. My heart was in the right place. But my life was a whirlwind. I couldn’t catch my breath.
Something had to change. I knew I needed some help.
So, my family began a journey to figure out how we could manage our time well and focus on the things that were most important to us. This pursuit has lasted 15 years (and counting). And it has paid off tremendously!
I can’t say that every day goes exactly according to plan. That’s not even possible. But, I can say, with confidence, that we now live the kind of lives we want to live. We focus our efforts on those things we value most.
We still don’t get everything done. We drop the ball sometimes. But we’re headed in the right direction. We have close, meaningful relationships with people that we love and we’re using our talents and experiences to do things that (we think) have meaning.
Each person’s life looks different. What’s important to me may not be what’s important to you. The “plan of attack” for regaining control of our schedules won’t look the same.
However, if your schedule feels like it’s a bit out of control, there are some universal steps you can take to begin finding a tailor-made approach.
5 Steps to Declutter your Schedule and Live Your Desired Life
1. Acknowledge the fact that you can’t do everything.
We can only do so much. We have unlimited options, but limited resources. We have to make important decisions to eliminate some things. When we’re feeling especially productive and superhuman, we struggle to admit this reality. But, we can’t do it all. We have to remove the clutter.
Clutter is the stuff that interferes with the life we want to live. It slows us down from doing the things we value most. It’s that unnecessary stuff that we entertain, but doesn’t help us get where we want to go. And it needs to be removed.
2. Clarify what’s most important…to you!
The things that are important to you will affect how you make decisions and how you spend your days. If you don’t know where you’re going, why bother establishing a path? Before you start developing a plan, you have to know what you want to accomplish and what rules you will play by. You need a what and a why before you figure out how.
You’ll need clarity in at least 3 important areas:
What kind of person do you want to be?
What relationships are most important to you?
What do you want to accomplish?
3. Determine what you have to do to live for those things.
Once you’ve identified your objective, you can begin to think about how you’ll get there. It is incredibly important to identify your goals and values. But if you don’t take the second step and think about your plan to live up to them, then they are only dreams.
You have to map out a route to your destination. You have to figure out the best way to be and do what you want to be and do. You have to determine what actions will be required and what tools you’ll need to accomplish them. If we don’t, we run the risk of just wandering around through life as a slave to our circumstances.
4. Say “no” to other stuff that hinders you.
It’s not enough to know what things you should do. You also have to get clarity on the types of things you should not do. We’ve already established that our time is limited. We will have to make choices about how we spend our time. We will have say “no” to some things so we can say “yes” to others.
Inevitably, we will face circumstances that could throw us off course and make us want to give up on our dreams. Sometimes, these hindrances are caused by unhealthy behaviors. Sometimes, they are caused by people who want to see us fail. Sometimes, they are caused by good things that aren’t best.
Regardless of what causes the hindrances, we have to pay attention to them and make some decisions about what activities need to get the boot!
5. Find what motivates you and use it.
Study yourself and figure out what makes you tick. What makes you come alive? What makes you feel human and reminds you that you are not just a robot with a job and a checkbook? What tugs at your heart? What reminds you of the things you value most?
It may be: listening to music, blogging, dancing, painting, singing, jogging, lifting weights, or something really random and strange that you just love to do.
It’s okay if it isn’t related to your “greater purpose” or if it even makes sense to other people. If it motivates you (and it’s legal), do it!
Life’s too short to spend our days in constant frustration.
Don’t allow things of lesser importance to rob you of the life you could be living. Take a good look at your life and be honest. Do the work and declutter your schedule. You can do this!
So excited! I just ordered mine! I love what Stefan Johnson wrote on the Facebook post (mentioned above): "My wife and I are working on a game based on association. The idea is to pass out 7 cards to each player, place the deck in the middle, and show the top card face up next to the deck. The person to the right of the dealer starts and has to play a card that relates to the permaculture value of the card. For example, if the card that is face up is Wind & Berms (5 of Diamonds) then the player might play Hugelkultur (Ace of Clubs) because it is often built into a smaller berm style system. These types of associations need to be explained as you lay the card down. Saying "because it's also part of permaculture" is not allowed... one must try to be detailed in why the two associate. If the player does not have a card they can associate, they may opt to play the traditional "match face or suit" but they must still draw after playing if they go this route. If they can't even match face or suit, they must draw and play no card, passing to the next player in turn. The person who plays the last card in their hand wins."
I have a good number of pokeweed plants on my property and I wondered if I could chop and drop them on my veggie garden. Does anyone else have pokeweed growing on their property? If so, do you compost them? What do you do with them? TIA.
Yes! Do it! I have done this with wild carrot seeds that I harvested from the wild. For whatever reason I have not had luck with domesticated carrot seeds in my garden. Anyway, the wild carrots seeds are, as I suspected they would, producing!
Silly me. Last year I purchased Italian dandelion seeds from Johnny's. I should have just done what you stated in the OP Keep us posted.
I just did a lot of research on H. mantegazzianum and wrote a blog post about it. I'll give you a short summary of why you need to know this plant well and then if you are interested you can read the full post in which I cite many, many sources.
"The sap of this plant will give a person a horrifyingly nasty and painful skin rash that will last for weeks. If the sap gets into a person’s eyes, it will cause blindness (one source says temporary blindness). The toxin in the sap is activated by UV rays (phytophotodermatitis). According to Midwest Invasive Plant Network, giant hogweed is a perennial herbaceous plant that, by the 4th or 5th year, produces a 7-15 foot flower stalk. Before then its form is a rosette that grows bigger and bigger each year until it is ready to produce that humongous flower stalk and gigantic flower umbels.
Why is this plant so dangerous? According to this CBC report, “The toxins in the sap can create what is known as “phytophotodermatitis” — basically an extreme sensitivity to sunlight. The effects of the toxins are not felt immediately, but once activated by UV rays, they can damage skin cells and cause lesions that look similar to burns.”"
It is related to common hogweed, poison hemlock and Queen Anne's lace (wild carrot).
If you are a plant-lover, I highly recommend two resources: Botany in a Day by Thomas Elpel and Paul Wheaton's 11-part podcast wherein he and Neil Bertrando go through the book together and discuss each section. You can find the permies thread here: https://permies.com/t/24542/podcast/Podcast-Botany-Day-Review-Part#281392 And in that link you will find the link to purchase (for $3) the podcast bundle: http://www.scubbly.com/item/76894/
If you are more interested in other topics within PC, you should definitely ask around in the appropriate subforums about which resources (books, etc.) are highly prized.
I find that information is more solidified in my brain if I study the info and organize it in a way that I am able to explain the info to someone else. Looking forward to watching your videos!
Question for raw stinging nettle eaters. Today I finally decided to eat raw stinging nettles for the first time. Actually, it was my first time eating stinging nettles period. So, I ate two leaves in the morning. I plucked a leaf and folded it up and rubbed it a bit to crush the stingers. Then I ate them. Good. No sting on my fingers or in my mouth. So, this afternoon, I decided to make a green smoothie with them (about 10 one-inch leaves from the tops of the plants; they were not flowering yet). My ingredients were stinging nettles, melon and water. I blended it in my blender and drank. The back of my mouth and beginning of my throat feel a bit like they got stung. I'm thinking that some of the stingers survived the blending process. Has this happened to any of you who eat raw stinging nettles?
My head, arms and hands started having a strange sensation. I could breath just fine and my stomach didn't hurt. The sensation was sort of tingling. But my hands felt a distinct but mild throbbing. My husband insisted that I take some benadryl (diphenhydramine; anti-histamine). The sensation is even milder now. Anyway, it is possible that I am slightly allergic (I read somewhere that some people are allergic or at least sensitive to it. Perhaps I am one.
I wonder if the sensation was from any niacin in them. I recall what a niacin flush felt like and this was sooooo similar to it. Is there niacin in nettles?
Moderator: I know that this could be cross-posted in a few other forums. Do I ask you to do that or can I just copy and paste into the appropriate forums? TIA.
Landon Sunrich wrote:As to criteria - For me its a sliding scale based on a few factors. Primarily what the risk is if I'm wrong. If there is a well know poisonous analog in the region I'm going to need to be much more certain (confirmed with multiple knowledgeable sources or having previously collected it several times with a knowledgeable source) Generally if I'm seriously questioning if I have a positive ID with something I have no experience in I avoid it even if there was nothing truly dangerous in the area. I'm more likely to try a small bit of some new leaf or root than berries. I tend to try tips and newer growth first and only in small amounts. Worst 'to hell with it, lets see if its edible' I've seen was when a friend tried Skunk cabbage leaf. Very unpleasant for the person involved but not truly dangerous. But this was with a positive ID but mistaken concept of what was edible. I do make a distinction between dangerous and unpleasant when I'm weighing whether or not to take a stab at whatever it is.
Exactly how I feel (esp. about weighing the risk of being wrong)! I have learned all of the wild edibles that I now eat from videos (Green Deane of eatheweeds.com; he has a youtube channel) and from 3 AMAZING books with crisp, color up-close photos of plants in all stage of their life cycle: Edible Wild Plants by John Kallas and 2 by Samuel Thayer: Nature's Garden and Forager's Harvest. The reason why these books are so AMAZING is because they are NOT field guides (which have just a paragraph and a sh***y b/w photo of hundreds of plants). These 3 books only tackle about 2 or 3 dozen plants and give 6-10 pages on each plant. But not only that, the authors have lots of personal experience eating each of the profiled plants. AND both authors give an amazing and helpful understanding about harvesting wild plants in general. For example, you need to know at what stage of the plant's life cycle is best for harvesting a particular part of the plant for the best taste and nutrition. Pick an old dandelion leaf and eat it and you will have an unpleasant experience. But pick the tender young leaves before the plant flowers and put it as 10% of your salad greens and you will have a much better experience with this particular wild food.
Anyway, these books are worth a 100 times more than the $13-15 price tag. One time I commented to a friend (in the presence of my husband) that "these books rocked my foraging world!" and he will never let me live that down. Yes, I am a wild food enthusiast
I am on part 5 of your podcast on this book; still enjoying your conversation with Neil (Neal?) about it. I was following along with my library's copy. I was sad that I couldn't mark up the library's copy with notes so I bought the SIXTH edition (and it has color -- ooooh!).
Judith Browning wrote:We generally eat lambsquarters cooked...steamed usually. It seems to cook up tender in just a short time and I've never had even July leaves be bitter. I keep pinching out the new leaf growth and the plants end up kind of bushy. It is our favorite and most prolific green from now through July.
My favorite way to eat them is in my daily green smoothie (sometimes in salad). And, I, too, pinch off the new leaf growth for consuming.
The care farm idea is to have challenged people join us in the work on the farm.
This will give them day activities other that doing yet an other colour plate.
In the mean time during activities the will get coaching, personal talks and assistance.
Apart form having them see the joy of what they have grown themselves (and taste ) we try to work with their possibilities, not their impossibilities.
We would learn them how to seed, grow and multiply plants that they can sell themselves.
Thanks Elissa, working hard to make a dream come true and share the fream.
Judith Browning wrote:Good idea, I think. Will you have to peek under the leaves to watch for germination and then remove them when plants are up? Keeping the soil moist through germination is always a problem for me....anything that works other than watering everyday with a sprinkling can sounds great.
I envy your large patch of burdock! it grows here but when I wanted to find some to transplant to our land I could not and ended up buying and trading for seed...my plants are very small so far. i see your lambs quarters too....we are eating it daily now along with dock.
Yes, I am going NO-IRRIGATION this year. I was inspired by various talks given by Paul. Now, this row is not a hugulkultur row BUT I am just experimenting (it is very rich soil). He said that seeds that are not pampered with constant watering will become hardier (or die!) because the sprouts will send down more root to find water. Something like that.
Oh, I love wild spinach (lambsquarters). How do you like to consume it?
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