The Planting Moon

Hopefully this day finds you in your gardens enjoying the sun and  planting seeds. Today is the "Planting Moon" and those following lunar cycles to plant, find this an auspicious day full of fecundity and vitality for the newly planted seed. 

Perhaps you know it already, but each full moon goes by many different names around the world. Many of these names indicate seasonal activities or traits of the season, such as the "Planting Moon" or the "Harvest Moon." Check out this link for a list of some the full moon names.

And if you haven't yet planted your seeds, this long holiday weekend is a perfect time. Rather than going to the beach or picnics at a park, this is exactly how I usually spend my holiday weekend - in the sun and dirt with seeds in my hands.

And if you are looking to add the littlest of the Three Sisters (beans) to your garden this year, here's a suggestion from my vegetable garden. My vegetable seeds (last year's leftovers and new seeds for the year) used to be kept in a shoebox. Well, I went past them fitting in a large moving box long ago. One of my problems is that I end up with 6 seeds of this or 12 of that leftover - not enough for a row of any thing but I save them anyways. I think there is something criminal about throwing out seeds so I never do it. But seeds don't last forever. Although outside some notable exceptions, most seeds retain decent viability for 2-3 years.

So unless you get exactly the same varieties of a vegetable each year, you'll have leftovers like me. Take those tiny handfuls of seeds from previous seasons mix them and plant a row. The most enjoyable rows of beans I ever grew were the rows of pole beans I grew the last two years where I did just this. The rows were highly productive over a long period since all the varieties mature at slightly different rates. And the mixed bean harvest had a variety of color and taste on the dinner plate.

And on that subject....if you are not already a fan of pole beans, I urge you to try some this year. Most gardeners have more desire for plants than garden space. Pole beans are an excellent producer for the small footprint they take up in the garden. They grow up, not out. You sow them rather thickly and let them climb. You don't need anything fancy or complicated for them to climb on. Long sticks and poles work just fine and hey, those do grow on trees!

Have a wonderful holiday weekend and join me (at least in spirit) in the sun and rich earth of the garden!

-kim

Native Plant Smackdown

While reading a forum on native plants a few weeks back I came across a link to the article Garden Smackdown - Roll Call: Native Plants in my Garden. The article was a challenge was to list and share what native plants were growing in your garden. I found this an interesting idea since I have dedicated my gardening and planting energies over the last 10 years to one of 3 categories - food, medicinal, and native plants. So I've made a list of the native plants growing at my home that I or the previous owner planted or have encouraged to grow. There are many benefits to growing natives - hardy & pest resistant, support native fauna (like butterflies), need little special care once established, and many are simply beautiful. I've separated the plants into multiple lists to help you if you would like to try these in your gardens - which I strongly encourage!

Need more info: What are native plants? and How to and why to plant native plants

Sun-loving Perennials:
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Pale Purple Coneflower (Echinacea pallida)
Tennessee Purple Coneflower (Echinacea tennesseensis)

Yellow Coneflower (Echinacea paradoxa)
Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
Asters - multiple varieties (Asters spp.)
Goldenrod - multiple varieties (Solidago spp.)
Blue False Indigo (Baptisia australis)
Tickseed (Coreopsis lanceolata)
Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
Queen of the Prairie (Filipendula rubra)
Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosa)
Perennial Sunflower (Helianthus maximillian)
Bee Balm (Monarda didyma)
Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa)
Black-eyed-Susan (Rudebeckia hirta)
Roseroot (Rhodiola rosea)
Mountain Mint (Pycanthemum virginianum)
Cherokee Sweet Mint (Pycanthemum incanum)
Blue Vervain (Verbena hastata)
Indian Hemp (Apocynum cannabinum)
Wild Qinine (Parthenium integrifolium)

Shade-loving, Woodland Perennials:

Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
Labrador Violet (Viola labradorica)
Red Trillium (Trillium erectum)
White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum)
Prairie Trillium (Trillium recurvatum)
Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum peltatum)

Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum)

White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda)

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)
Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa)
Bleeding Heart (Dicentra eximia)
Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis)
Twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla)
Ramps (Allium tricoccum)
American Spikenard (Aralia urticifolia)

Partial Sun/Shade Perennials:
Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)
Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum)

Woody Plants - Trees/Shrubs:
Kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi)
Sweet Birch (Betula lenta)
Sweet Shrub (Calycanthus floridus)

New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus)
Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginicus)
Grey Dogwood (Cornus racemosa)
Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida)
American Hazel (Corylus americana)
Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana)
Spicebush (Lindera benzoin)
Pussy Willow (Salix discolor)
Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)
High Bush Cranberry (Viburnum trilobum)
Arrowwood (Viburnum dentatum)
Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis)
American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana)
Washington Hawthorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum)
Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana)
American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)
Tuliptree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Red Pine (Pinus resinosa)
Slippery Elm (Ulmus rubra)

Vines:
Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa)


Feel free to post your own native plants list (via a comment to this post) or perhaps let us know how the plants you purchased from the native plant vendors we had at our Native American Dance & Music Festival last year are doing.

If you are feeling a bit confused and would love to read more, my favorite book on native plants of this region is Native Plants of the Northeast by Donald Leopold. I've included a link to the right for this book. Enjoy and go native!

-kim

Recycle Craft - Plant Markers

Traditionally Native peoples, like all early cultures, made the utmost use of the materials at hand. There were no Mega-Marts. No pre-fab kits. You made what you needed or perhaps traded with someone who could. So beyond just the respect for Mother Earth and her finite resources, I think recycle crafts are a modern incarnation of that ancient creative and ingenious spirit of our ancestors to use, re-use, and re-purpose materials at hand for all their needs.

The following is a simple recycle craft to create plant markers or labels out of containers that would have been otherwise thrown in the recycle bins.

Materials Needed:
• Plastic container -
     #2 plastic 1-gallon works best
• Scissors
• Permanent Markers


1.) Clean and dry containers as needed.


2.) Using sturdy craft scissors or kitchen shears, cut sections out of the container. Cutting along corners to maximize flat usable surfaces is best.

Cut off the bottom and save.

3.) Cut the sections into strips. The exact size is up to you. For the example shown here, the strips were approximately an inch wide.

If there are curves or uneven spots, do not worry. The last step addresses that.

4.) Make two cuts at the end of each strip to create a point.


5.) Use a permanent marker to write the plant's name or other information on the label.

Since I try lots of different heirloom varieties of vegetables each year, I use lots of these markers in seed starting!


6.)After the permanent marker has dried, fold or crease the stake lengthwise. This will address any curved parts of the plant marker, give the label some stability, and will make these markers easier to push into the soil.

7.) Label your plants and enjoy. Note: the permanent marker will fade if used outdoors. I get a growing season out of these before they are too faded. If you live in very hot or sunny location, you may get less time before fading.

8.) The bottom saved earlier in an earlier step can be used too. I use it as a saucer for some of those young potted seedlings!

I hope you enjoyed this simple craft. If you have recycle ideas to share, post a link in the comments to this article or send them to us at friends@frontiernet.net. Thanks!

-kim

Beat a Drum for Ganondagan Rally

We hope you could make it to our Beat a Drum for Ganondagan Rally today. It was a gorgeous day - sun and blue skies with the cherry, apple, and serviceberry trees in bloom. The day was made all the more special and beautiful by all the friends and supporters who came to show their support for Ganondagan! 


At the rally Perry Ground, President of the Friends of Ganondagan, spoke, shared stories, sang, and introduced our guest speakers. All our speakers and supporters were of the same mind - a treasure like Ganondagan can not be allowed to vanish! Even the hawk that flew overhead lent his support to our cause.


If you were not able to attend, let me be the first to share with you excellent news - the Seneca Nation of Indians has committed to the full amount of money that is needed to allow the site to open on May 1st for the season! NYA:WEH! [Thank you!] The money will be used for all the costs associated with opening the site for the season.

Nya:weh to all those that have generously opened their hearts and pocketbooks to financially support us as well! We will use your generous donations in support of the site and the programming which we offer to you.

Even though we have the money to open, please do not let up your pressure on your elected officials. The state budget must pass and insure the state parks and historic sites can not only open but remain open for the season. The money that we have collected and that has been pledged to us thus far will enable us to open but we require the state to pass a budget that supports us for the rest of the season.


 Nya:weh to all our supporters, rally attendees, friends, donors, and well-wishers!


-kim

Birdwatching at Ganondagan

My eyes are usually down while trail walking. I'm a self-proclaimed "plant nerd" and looking down is the way to spot all the interesting plants along the way. But I must admit that last week while trail walking at Ganondagan that my eyes were often brought up. Spring is a wonderful time not only to see and enjoy wildflowers, it is also a great time to do some birdwatching.

While I can identify hundreds of plants and trees, I am no birder. The birds I can identify by sight and song are rather limited but even I could recognize the wonderful collection of birds that I could see or hear along my hike. I knew it would be a good day for seeing our feathered friends when a male bluebird warbled at me from his perch atop the bark longhouse.

In my travels I saw or heard many birds but I can only identify a few. Those few included: bluebirds, ring-necked pheasant (I was close enough to hear him drum his wings after his call), chickadees, crows, blue-jays, flickers, woodpeckers (heard, not seen!), canada goose, tree swallows, and robins. There were others, but not ones I knew.

I included a link to my favorite bird field guide, Peterson Field Guides Eastern Birds. It's a great guide to take on trail walks that covers all the birds you would most likely see at Ganondagan. It has color pictures and brief descriptions for each bird with a format that is friendly to the beginner as well as more experienced bird watchers.

I've also included a link to an audio CD, Birding by Ear: Eastern and Central North America. Sometimes you never see the bird, but you certainly can hear them. And unless it is a mockingbird (who I can hear right now singing outside my window), the bird songs are pretty distinctive for each species. My mockingbird friend does the bird world's "Greatest Hits" for me - he serenades me with bluebird and other distinctive bird calls that are not his own!

Whether it is Ganondagan's trails or your own backyard, I hope you can get out and enjoy the beauty and song of our avian friends!


-kim

Spring Ephemerals at Ganondagan

Spring Ephemeral is the term used to describe a whole group of early spring blooming wildflowers that vanish nearly as quickly as they appear.

Today while hiking at Ganondagan, I managed to snap some lovely shots of one my my favorite Spring Ephemerals, Bloodroot. I had to share one of the images - I hope you enjoy it!

Be sure to make a little time to do some trail walking in early spring to catch these and other early blooming wildflowers!

-kim

Botanical Medicine Certificate Program

While this is not Friends of Ganondagan sponsored programming, we thought our friends and members may be interested in taking a few classes or perhaps the whole series from our good friend and skilled Naturopathic doctor, Dr. Les Moore, N.D. M.S.O.M., LAc. I can personally vouch for the high quality nature of these herbal medicine classes since I have taken the entire certificate program as well as completing an apprenticeship with Dr. Moore.

Whether you are interested in learning how to use herbs medicinally or love plants and want to know more about how they are used, be sure to check these classes out! I have included class details below but contact Classical Formulas at 315-462-0190 for any additional information or to register! Enjoy!

-kim

Botanical Medicine Certificate Program

Medical Herbalism Part III
April 8th through May 13th

This Course is the third in a series of three herbal study programs to be offered at Clifton Springs Hospital through the Integrative Medicine department, The Botanical Medicine Institute, and Classical Formulas. While each series has a similar format, they will contain different information. These classes are appropriate for health care providers, people employed in health related businesses or anyone interested in Herbalism.

Dr. Moore and herbalists from Classical Formulas Herbal Medicinary will instruct these classes. Dr. Moore has a life-long interest and extensive education in the field of Herbalism, both Western and Eastern.

You may register for the whole series or at the beginning of each class. Students may begin ANY series at ANY time with no prerequisites of the previous series. Each series is a stand-alone module. Students completing all three of the series (Parts I, II & III) will receive a certificate upon course completion. To be certain you have a place in class please register early, as class size is limited.

Tuition is $120 for the series or $20 per class. Contact Classical Formulas for registration at 315-462-0190 by April 6th.

PLEASE NOTE: All classes are held on Thursdays at Clifton Springs Hospital from 6:30 - 8:30pm with the exception of the herb walk on Saturday May 1st 2010 held at the Ontario Pathways Trail, Phelps, NY at 9:00am.


Medical Herbalism Part III - April 8th through May 13th 2010
Course Descriptions

Class 1 – Botanical Medicine/Single Herbs – April 8th
Learn about herbs to soothe gastrointestinal tract as well as nervous system, aid in digestion, allergies and cleansing as well as combating viruses including fevers.

Class 2 – Herbal Therapeutics/Spring Detoxification–April 15th
This class will focus on herbal therapeutics for detoxifying the body.

Class 3 – Herbal Medicine Making – April 29th
Learn how to make herbal infusions with oil, vinegar and honey. We will also discuss making herbal salves from the oil infusions.

Class 4 – Plant Identification/Herb Walk – May 1st
This class will be a 3+ hour walk to identify plants in the surroundings area. You will learn about their habitat, history and uses. This class will meet at the Ontario County Pathways trail, Route 96, Phelps, NY. Bring water and snack, dress for the weather and wear appropriate footwear.

Class 5 – Herb Pairs/Drug Interaction and Materia Medica for Children – May 6th
This class will focus on paired herbs that are therapeutic for specific conditions. Information on interactions that can occur between medicines and herbs will also be discussed as well as herbal dosages for children.

Class 6 – Herbal Formulas & Modifications – May 13th
Herbs used in herbal formulas can act synergistically and can be tailored for each unique individual, even as a person or environment changes. This class will consider how formulas can be used and altered to address specific changes.