Perma-Living

I am working on making permaculture a bigger part of my life, an interest that has slowly grown over the years. I got fired up when I attended a permaculture course with friends last year and I love learning and getting ideas from others. I also love making things and especially rag rug making, crochet, felting... well, I'll try anything once!

[dragonflyinthefields]

Daphne mezereum It’s a protected speices here in Sweden so i am happy that it’s still here and not dead or crushed or something.

[aquadulce]

Lovely to see it in flower, I bet it smells fantastic!

[aquadulce]

One of the commentators says ' It sings to my soul"

It sings to mine too!

[motherearthnewsmag]

How Canning Works

The Science. The more you learn about food science, the more confident you’ll be in the kitchen. This is true for all kinds of cooking, but is especially helpful with food preservation. When you preserve food, you are either trying to freeze time or to encourage specific bacteria to proliferate and crowd out harmful bacteria. Canning is all about freezing time. [Keep reading….]

Photos by Tim Nauman Photography

[aquadulce]

This is just so beautiful! I love the coloured lids!

[world-shaker-deactivated2013092]

Phonebloks

Don’t get me wrong, the new iPhones look interesting. But this is an excellent idea for the future of cellphones. 

(by Dave Hakkens)

[theocproject]

Completely agree with the OP. This is a very democratic, sustainable, and innovative path forward for cell phones. I hope such an idea can catch on.

[slurivariv-deactivated20210209]

I support this 100%.

[dragonflyinthefields]

Rowan and crabapples. Beautiful, beautiful august! Read a recipie for crabapplejelly that i would like to try.

And of course, rowanberryjelly, a classic in Sweden often served with game meats like elk and rawdeer and such.

[aquadulce]

My aunt always made some, she said there were sweet and bitter rowan berries. In Norfolk I have never found any sweet ones, but maybe that’s because most are decorative cultivars?

[dragonflyinthefields]

I have never found any sweet ones either. Or even heard about. But they get sweeter after the first freeze of the year. And if the berries happen to ripe long before any freeze are in sight, one can simply put them in the freezer for twentyfour hours. That’s what i usually do.

[aquadulce]

Thanks, I'll give that a go. Last time I made it, no one liked it a lot, hopefully it will make the difference!

[60npermaculture-deactivated2016]

04.06.2013 Purho, Finland

Not really sure what this is, but plenty of blooms and quite a few insects were enjoying the nectar.

[aquadulce]

It looks like lilac. Lovely smell!

[dragonflyinthefields]

Rowan and crabapples. Beautiful, beautiful august! Read a recipie for crabapplejelly that i would like to try.

And of course, rowanberryjelly, a classic in Sweden often served with game meats like elk and rawdeer and such.

[aquadulce]

My aunt always made some, she said there were sweet and bitter rowan berries. In Norfolk I have never found any sweet ones, but maybe that's because most are decorative cultivars?

[dragonflyinthefields]

Also, found this little guy.

[aquadulce]

And his dinner by the looks of it! ; )

[dragonflyinthefields]

It is hard to believe that my favourite colour actually is green.

[aquadulce]

You have a lot of green outside, no?

[aquadulce]

Clafoutis for tea- yum!

[dragonflyinthefields]

Made some wildcherryalmondjam! A real pain in the ass to unseed the tiny berries but absolutely worth it tastewise.

[aquadulce]

Very industrious! I recognise your cutlery holder, I have the same! XD

[aquadulce]

The fabulous sauna at the fabulous venue, what a treat!

[aquadulce]

Our 4th weekend on the permaculture design course, sharing food in sunny Norfolk!

[rainingsugar]

Behold! The AFFE 3000XS!

patent pending.

[aquadulce]

Has it been tested?

[aquadulce]

This is a picture of Daphne mezereum, I think it may be what Dragonflyinthefields found. It is native in Europe and I have found out that it was used in early paper making. I thought that it’s German name Seidelbast suggested a valuable fibre, so that was great to find out about. It is toxic for humans and apparently very dangerous for small children as just a few berries can kill a child. In the Middle Ages the berries were used to cure diarrhea in horses and it is also used in homoeopathy. Thrushes eat the berries and help to distribute the plant.

[dragonflyinthefields]

This look very like my specimen! :D How clever of you to find out! The berries I found are collected in the same way below the leafy parts and the overall look of the plant is very similar. Good to know that it is poisonous! Not that I was tempted to taste it anyway. :)

[aquadulce]

I love finding new plants and it always interests me a lot! I would love to see it in blossom, it should be amazing! I also read that the plant was used for smoking out bees. Great find!

[aquadulce]

This is a picture of Daphne mezereum, I think it may be what Dragonflyinthefields found. It is native in Europe and I have found out that it was used in early paper making. I thought that it's German name Seidelbast suggested a valuable fibre, so that was great to find out about. It is toxic for humans and apparently very dangerous for small children as just a few berries can kill a child. In the Middle Ages the berries were used to cure diarrhea in horses and it is also used in homoeopathy. Thrushes eat the berries and help to distribute the plant.

[dragonflyinthefields]

This little beggar is growing in the middle of the track. Anyone know what it is?

[aquadulce]

I am not sure, but it looks like some kind of Euphorbia to me. Has it got a milky sap?

[dragonflyinthefields]

Hm maybe, altough the euphorbias I know of are more like perennials, I think? This is more like a shrub. I dont kow about the sap but shall check. Also I found some intensely red small berries on it yesterday.

[aquadulce]

It may be Daphne Mezereum, which is native to Europe and up to scandinavia. It's German Name Seidelbast seems to me to suggest it has useful fibers, but I have found no evidence for that so far. Very interesting!