Blackforager 🌼 Alexis Nikole

I yell about plants. I wear fun lil outfits. I eat acorns. Outdoor educator, mediocre beatboxer, pretty good cook.

[blackforager]

One of my buddies said this reminded them of old tumblr pics so of course I had to post it on tumblr

[chase-solidago]

whats cool is they really want to dismantle noaa

lol

like the Endangered Species Act, the Migratory Bird Act, the Clean Air Act, I can like, idk, conceptualize at least. sucks shit but like, okay

but fucking NOAA. The National Weather Service. HURRICANE TRACKING

[systlin]

But seriously, when we got our property, it was all just…grass. A sterile grass moonscape, like a billion other yards. With two big old maple trees. Just grass and maples, that was it. 

But then I got my grubby little paws on it, and I immediately stopped fertilizing, spraying, and bagging up grass clippings and leaves. I ripped up sod and put in flowers and vegetables. I put down nice thick blankets of mulch around the flowers and vegetables. 

When I first was sweating my way through stripping sod, I saw a grand total of 1 worm and 0 ladybugs. The ground was compacted into something that would bend shovel blades. 

Now, six years later, I can’t dig a planting hole without turning up fourteen earthworms, and there are so many ladybugs here. Not the invasive asian lady beetles; native ladybugs. They winter over in the mulch and in the brush pile. I see thousands of them. 

The soil is soft and rich. There are birds that come to eat, and bees of many sorts.

Like this is something that you, yourself, can absolutely change. This is something that you, personally, can make a difference in.

[systlin]

Like, last year I watched no fewer than twenty-nine monarch caterpillars grow up on my milkweed and fly away as butterflies. I watched swallowtails and moths grow. There are hummingbirds fighting over flowers now.

I did that. Me. You can do the same.

[flamingbluepanda]

Is this post about making a garden or beating depression

[systlin]

As someone with clinically diagnosed anxiety and depression;

Yes.

[chase-solidago]

I spend like, a lot of my life thinking about, talking about, researching about, and digging around lawn. Like, a lot

Rethinking Lawns

Exploring lawn alternatives for biodiversity support, climate change resilience, and infrastructure improvements

[big-bad-shorty-king]

The book titles have me losing my fucking mind they’re so funny

[blackforager]

I miss when everyone took selfies like this !!

(I got a new camera and I’m making it everyone’s problem sorry!!)

[julieterbang]

jihyung_­baking

[blackforager]

I REALLY hope I get a crop of wild strawbs this upcoming season because I NEED TO MAKE SHORTCAKE

[julieterbang]

maryloony

[blackforager]

Okay I GOTTA make a drink that looks like this when apple blossom season rolls around

[blackforager]

i really wanna try and make OG-style marshmallows out of mallow root

if u don't hear about this again

it didn't work shhhh

[squeakitties]

the human eye has evolved to be able to detect more shades of green than any other color! that's because there are so many fucking leafs

[swaggy-hairy-thang]

Also because we were preparing for Shrek's arrival.

[cristalplanetheart]

[sneef-to-a-snorf-fight]

This Just In: Giant Beast Gingerly Eats Dandelions. More at 11.

[chase-solidago]

tumblr friends may not know:

i am indeed deep in the pawpaw sauce right now. they're a great plant to talk about for my topic of settlement, plant harvest, and perenial food ecosystems and I love them

also they taste very good

[blackforager]

It literally only JUST got cold and I already miss spring and summer foraging 😭

1. Irish Moss - Chondrus Crispus - used to set jellies and thicken desserts. Harvested in Maine!

2. Cooler!! Of!! Seaweed!! Mostly Irish Moss and Bladderwrack (which I make a cheesy seasoning with)

3. Mimosa flower mimosas ✨💕 summer in a GLASS! Mimosa flower cordial with champagne 🍾

4. Violet (viola sororia) flower syrup in the light

[blackforager]

Officially christening the new tumblr with some obnoxious aEsThEtiC selfies ✨

[escuerzoresucitado]

[zangoonse]

You got the

[life-imitates-art-far-more]

William Mason Brown (1828-1898) "Raspberries in a Wooded Landscape" Oil on canvas Located in the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas

[png-magician]