rise and root

***

~*~*~*~



The Flame Haired Solstice Dreamer

Cold winter brings the Everfrost and jewels every tree
In a forest new as birth and old as old can be
A flame~haired dreamer wanders there and shelters from the wind
And spins her dreams around the trees to break the ties that bind
She takes her thread and spins anew and how the Greenwood smiles
As she spins a spell for freedom and for her spirit Wylde

The dreamer finds an ancient oak and shelters in his lee
In a forest new as birth and old as old can be
Tis summer now and birdsong weaves its magick through her spells
And humming bees drum drowsily in the foxglove's bells
The dreamer sits beneath the oak with yarn upon her knee
And spins and knits and weaves her dreams and sets her spirit free

***
"When birds fall from the sky and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people...shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, who by their actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. they will be known as the warriors of the Rainbow"

Hopi Prophecy

~pottering & salad in a jar~

i have been in pottering mode this week...as well as blogging more than usual.

*pottering in the garden*

we have had a custom size cage built for mismi~his cage was fine except for when it rains. two thirds of the top is the door so in wet weather it gets wet when cleaning him out.
so we have had a rather swish two level cage four foot long, three foot high and two foot deep...



so now i have to share the nook with mismi as it is the only place that will be shaded from the sun (ahem...when it shines!) as our garden is a huge suntrap and ferrets do not like the heat
at all.
so i trimmed the rambling rose where it is growing up the fence that faces east, moved the few plants that were growing at the base and we have moved mismi's hone there~i just need swampy to cut a wooden base for it and it will go a little further back...giving me more of my nook back!

in building the footprint of the g*c swampy has had to build up the edge of the flower bed that is cody's and add an extra step to the two that lead to the end of the garden.
he had a small off cut which i appropriated and stood on two pots to act as a small garden table ~enough to hold two mugs, my piece of granite, one of my antlers and my mini cauldron i use for burning incense...



each day it is dry i pop out to do a little dead-heading and check my wild garden over~it really has become a beautiful wild garden, the kind i have always wished for...


that's my friend calv's little house and we enjoy many a chat over the fence

the day i took that photo was a surprisingly sunny day, i sat in my nook and just kept gazing up at the blue, cloudless sky as we had just come out of a few days where it rained so hard many areas of the south was flooded.



meet vita...


my pottering created some garden waste so we popped down the 'tip'
(waste recycling centre...i still go with tip!) and of course i had to have a little look in the 'shop' that is down there and came away with two little side plates and a jar minus lid...



so sweet

~*****~

the next morning...

well the pond is now properly in place and stepping stones laid leading from our archway to where the g*c door will be and we just need to now lay bark chippings (no lawn-our two attempts at a nice lawn were a dismal failure) and some slate around the edge of the pond.
the pump has actually been in a bit longer as we were keen to test it...




i am slightly obsessed by the tiny bowl that collects the water on its way down.

the waterfall is made up of a fibreglass mould that has been covered in ground cement and i am glad to see small patches of lichen already colonising it.

~*~*~*~

well last week i was intrigued by a part of a post by boho mom about a salad in a jar and thought what a fantastic idea it was, especially given how by about 4pm i am usually beaten down by my m.e/fibro and not up to cooking.
so when we went shopping i bought 3 kilner jars and my usual salad stuff and got to chopping...



 ...white cabbage, broccoli, carrot, organic heritage tomatoes, cucumber, salad onions, sweet red pepper, pine nuts and some new forest grown salad leaves i found in the farm shop.
i am not a huge fan of dressing as it masks the taste of the veggies so no dressing here.

i have to say it works really well and does keep it really fresh~the salad leaves went a tad limp and the pine nuts were not as crunchy but it was a great salad and was if i had just made it up.
because of the size of our fridge i can only keep three jars but that's is fine.
so if you saw boho's post and thought about having a go, then do so!

7 comments:

Rose said...

Your garden is lovely and I do hope Mismi likes the new House! *hugs*

Miss Robyn said...

I am loving your blog posts! Your garden has grown so much in the time you have been there.. and I am wondering how you made those standing stones in the second photo [in the background of the table photo].
thanks tons for your kind words.. did you realise it is now 5 years since you & Swampy, sent me that kind email when Daisy died?

foxysue said...

Just wanted to say hi, have come by way of Robyn, I suppose we're neighbours living only a few hundred miles away! (Derbyshire) Have enjoyed reading your posts, was interested in the Black Elder, I planted one a couple of years back, had no flowers til this year, what are you going to use the flowers for I wonder?

Hearthwife said...

The garden is really looking lovely, I thought maybe you were going to say that the offcut was going to be an altar ;)

Salad in a jar is a go then!

*H*

jill said...

Your garden looks very relaxing, when you get your girl cave it will be even more.What a lovely home Mismi has.Good idea with the salad for my lazy days when Iv been busy and cant be bothered to cook.Love Jill xx

laoi gaul~williams said...

Rose~yes mismi is loving the new area he has, at first he was a bit anxious about the ramp but now he is fine. we just now need to get him a friend!
K~there will be another offcut or two from a long piece swampy is using for a step into the g*c so i will have a piece for an alter. i have a mind to place it by the waterfall as water is so important.
Foxysue~welcome! yes, globally, we are neighbours. we would have been going through your shire next week on our way to a party but swampy has had injections into his spine and will not be up to the journey
:( i will be over to visit your blog shortly :)
Robyn~as i commented on your blog i was thinking exactly what you mention here~Daisy and the e-mail. i so remember discovering your blog (my first blog i visited!) and wondering why you were so upset and wondering who Daisy was. Of course i found her beautiful blog and could understand your grief. i am glad we were there to help in some small way. Five years...and we finally get to meet this year *hugs* xoxoxo

Rebecca said...

Your garden looks lovely, I love your mini stonehenge. We are planning a pond in the new house - hopefully, fingers crossed the sale goes through x

All things share the same breath~the beast, the tree, the man, the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.



Chief Seattle






Johney Gaul~1915

Johney Gaul~1915
1890-17 september 1918~France