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Of course regular outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, swimming and so on, have been a consistent part of our summer regimen ever since the kids could walk. Last summer, however, I thought it might be nice for the kids to have an additional activity they could engage in during times when the weather might not be as pleasant, and maybe something that might keep them very loosely in the flow of their studies for the two months they are out of school. I asked each of my kids to choose a creature they were interested in and create a slide show they could present to us when they were finished. That was basically it. Everything else was more or less up to them. The number of slides, the deadline, and how and when they researched everything was left in their hands. Had I pushed my children to do this or pressured them to complete the project I'm sure I would have been defeating the purpose. I wanted them to own this project and to take pride in it. Although my daughter, being in grade 5, had some classroom-related experience in this, creating a slide presentation was a brand new experience for my second-grade son. I made it clear that I would be there for guidance, but only if they required it. There were points I had my doubts these projects would be completed at all if I were not following up consistently with my two kids—that it would easily get buried among the high energy chaos of summer. However, as it turned out, every few days the kids would ask me if they could borrow my computer and work on their projects. This was a good sign. Also, instead of trying to push them in any way about the projects, I simply made a point of expressing a genuine interest in what they were doing. After all, who wouldn't be interested in seeing their child engaging in a self-driven venture that would help them grow? Ironically, when I asked to see any part of the projects, my interest was met with "Sorry Dad, you'll have to wait until it's finished!" --Well I'm glad I did. By summer’s end both my kids had a completed project, ready to show. We got out the popcorn and my son presented his slideshow on wasps, followed by my daughter who proudly showed her presentation on squids. Here are some points I think helped to keep my kids motivated in this project:
 My son (age 8) showing his presentation on his favourite creature: Wasps
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This month I figured I would keep the blog relatively simple and provide just a few healthful recipes we have conjured in our kitchen over the years. Hope you enjoy! Ted's Ginger Kombucha --This recipe, even though it is hidden on the Prairie Sage website, seems to be one of our most popular pages visited judging by the web traffic I see. Ted's Ginger Syrup --This is actually part of the recipe listed above, but on its own is very versatile as well. Can be used as a sweetener with a nice spicy kick to it! This is the simplest of the recipes I will list on today's blog. Salad with a Twist! --This one comes from a Valentine's Day post I composed a few years back. Nonetheless, a sexy way to freshen up the holiday season, or any time of year! Veggie Burger Recipe -- A nutritionally well-rounded burger with some real taste, unlike many veggie burgers on the market! Butter Chicken, Yes! -- Ok, so this may not be the healthiest recipe on our list, what with all the butter and some demarera sugar, but one of our family favourites! Feel free to check back on our Recipes page for future ideas for great meals!  Photo Courtesy Aaron Burden The holiday season has been notoriously known for sending our diets on a downward spiral and making us think twice about our eating habits. Conveniently, some of the healthiest edibles can be found in the land around our homes just before the ground heads into its winter freeze. This fall, being that I was on more of a health kick than usual, I began to notice how much I would miss having the opportunity to nibble on healthful veggies from the garden and in farmers markets and so I decided to go into winter storage mode. I looked around for items that had a decent shelf-life, and as time was short I wanted to choose plants I could process quickly, so instead of pickling or canning, I opted for the much more simple method of drying. I wanted things I could easily add to any meal--especially something like a smoothie. I was now on a drive to find nutrient-dense foods I could turn to powdered supplements. First on the list: Dandelions I, like a lot of people, am not particularly fond of the taste of dandelions. However, when powdered and mixed with other foods, the taste can be barely noticeable and even enjoyable. Either way, it is a worthy addition to a smoothie just for the health benefits. Now many people are aware of the positive effects dandelion has on the liver and as a blood tonic. However, even as a replacement to your average salad green, dandelions are agreeably superior. Looking at the nutritional table below, dandelion surpasses spinach in about 80% of major nutrients. Not too bad for something you can find for free and much closer to home than the grocery store! (Continued below...)  Nutritional data courtesy of http://nutritiondata.self.com/  The second and third items on my list and also heavy-weights in the realm of nutrition, were fireweed and mint leaves. I chose these mainly because of their abundance and availability around my home and that they would also dry and store well. Mint, by the way, also adds a refreshing flavour to virtually any recipe. You may still be able to find a few sprigs of any of these healthful herbs still growing in Calgary at this time of year if they have not yet been damaged by frost. If you live in an area with a longer growing season, chances are they will still be abundant--so now is the time to harvest before winter fully kicks in. The Next Steps
 3. Finally, place them into a grinder (any spice grinder or coffee grinder will do), and grind away until all large particles are converted into a fine powder.
4. Enjoy! One small scoop of any of these (less than a teaspoon) will be plenty for the day. Remember these are dried leaves so a teaspoon can amount to a couple of handfuls of fresh leaves! You can add these herbs to virtually any recipe. Raw recipes are generally better as the majority of the nutrients will not be lost due to the cooking process. Blending fireweed or dandelion with yogurt, for example, is also a way to introduce a green-tea-like flavour to those dishes. My children love the taste of mint powder in vanilla ice cream! Feel free to experiment with other edible herbs that grow nearby. If you want to look up nutritional data, an online resource I use is http://nutritiondata.self.com. Hope you enjoy and feel the health benefits. Also please share with the rest of us what tasty concoctions you come up with yourself! Each week until Tour Time, Prairie Sage will be profiling one of the sites on our 2017 tours list. For more information on our complete tours listing, and to register, check out the 2017 Calgary Permaculture Tour page!  This year we welcome Senses of the Soul to the tour lineup, and not only will they invite us for a feast for the senses and the spirit, but also a dinner feast after the tour is complete! This will be the final stop for 2 out of our 4 tour days this summer (July 29th and August 12) during the Sustenance for the Spirit tour!
The Senses of the Soul Botanical Sanctuary and Farm is a ten acre parcel of land where one can reconnect with nature, and find the stillness and quiet needed to hear the voice of the soul. Included in the garden are 7 distinct areas, each corresponding to the 7 main chakras of the human body. Samantha Orthlieb, who operates this refuge for the spirit, offers medicine woman/medicine man training and a host of other workshops and activities at her site. She is also author of the book "Opening The Senses Of The Soul: Healing Into Wholeness With Nature's Vibrational Medicine". She has also invited us to observe a a mini plant music demo with a device she has received from Europe in order to demonstrate how the electrical frequencies emitted by plants can be translated into music! Please check out this years Tours Page to find out more about Senses of the Soul as well as the other sites we will visit on the same day! Next week's profile: The Concrete Jungle Each week until Tour Time, Prairie Sage will be profiling one of the sites on our 2017 tours list. For more information on our complete tours listing, and to register, check out the 2017 Calgary Permaculture Tour page!  Patterson Springs Farm has been a mainstay of our tour since we began in the summer of 2012 and has always been the final stop on the tour offering a full multiple-course dinner as a finishing touch to the day. This year is no exception as they will be the final stop for 2 out of our 4 tour days this summer (July 30th and August 13)!
The name Patterson Springs Farm is inspired by Frank Patterson, the man who homesteaded this land back in 1902. There is a wonderful freshwater spring on the land which has provided the best drinking water you could imagine, for all these years, to the six generations of Pattersons who have called this farm home. This 80 acre farm in the foothills of southern Alberta has a passion for history and the environment that they would like to share. Here they offer workshops in Permaculture and Pioneer Skills such as growing & preserving your own organic food. They even boast a monthly home delivery service, offering fresh produce, home baking and farm fresh eggs from happy chickens. Patterson Springs also has a large organic vegetable garden, rabbits, bee hives, walking trails and much more! Please check out this years Tours Page to find out more about Patterson Springs as well as the other sites we will visit this tour season! Next week's profile: Senses of the Soul Each week until Tour Time, Prairie Sage will be profiling one of the sites on our 2017 tours list. For more information on our complete tours listing, and to register, check out the 2017 Calgary Permaculture Tour page!  The Leaf Ninjas is back on our tour list this year the give us a guided walk-through of a very special site--one of the residences of The Ninjas themselves! Joining us for the August 12 tour date only, Dave and the gang welcome us right into one of their homes to show off their holistic approach to landscaping and food supply:
"We focus on a wholistic approach to the growing, supplying and installation of plants species and designs around ecological restoration, rainwater harvesting, edible landscaping and urban farming. It's our pleasure to work with developers, landscape architects, permaculture contractors, schools and municipalities. With our native and edible plant nursery 25 minutes East of Calgary, we’re able to grow the highest quality of point-sourced plants for public parks, restoration, erosion control, food production and private residences. Join us at one of our personal residences to explore our multiyear install including food forestry, annual vegetable production and rain water harvesting. Designed for beauty, high intensity production, pollination and function. Looking forward to having the Permaculture Tour once again come to one of our sites." You can even order some very unique and hard to find edible plants from them online! For more information, follow this link: http://www.leafninjas.ca/edible-plants-nursery/ Next week's profile: Patterson Springs Farm Each week until Tour Time, Prairie Sage will be profiling one of the sites on our 2017 tours list. For more information on our complete tours listing, and to register, check out the 2017 Calgary Permaculture Tour page!  For the second year in a row, reGenerate Design will be joining our list of awesome tour sites. This year Adrian, Lindsay and Luke will be showing off 2 of their works of art on two separate tour dates. In addition to this, they are the designers for the Senses of the Soul landscape--a new addition to the tours this year (and also where we are scheduled to enjoy dinner for 2 out of the 4 tour dates). This year reGenerate will be taking us to Ramsay (July 29th) and to Mongomery (August 13). Each of these sites is profiled briefly below: Ramsay This backyard is an example of permaculture principles in action! The backbone of this project is the integrated rainwater harvesting system that exemplifies the principle of catching and storing energy by putting rainwater to use in five different ways before it leaves the property. This project efficiently and effectively brings together many important uses in a compact space, allowing the homeowner to obtain a variety of yields from perennial food forest areas, a water feature tire pond, social space with a fire pit, and nearly 200 square feet of raised annual vegetable beds that are equipped with custom-designed season-extending cold frames.  Montgomery
In this full-property project, the challenge was the solution. Working with a triangular property shape, a unique house orientation that captures passive solar energy, and a steep slope in the rear and side yard areas; all of these challenges resulted in a beautiful and functional design that takes advantage of the site characteristics. Rainwater flows from the downspouts through dry creek beds to cascading mulch basins that weave through the yard and form interesting pockets of food forests intertwined with flagstone and crushed rundle pathways. A trellis for growing hops extends along the main pathway that leads to the patio area and eventually to the secret corner reading nook. All of the elements work together to form a cohesive space that can be enjoyed by the homeowners and their friends and family. The third of reGenerate Design's sites on our list, the Senses of the Soul (July 29 and August 12) has it's own story and therefore, will be profiled separately at a future date. Next week's profile: The Leaf Ninjas  This year most of Alberta has had a longer period without frost, and many areas have been lucky enough not to be hit yet, and it’s nearly October! Well if you are looking for ways to dodge the first few days of frost when they do happen, here are some options-both obvious and maybe not so obvious (and if your garden has been hit, start planning for next year). Frost generally occurs for two reasons: 1. Either there has not been enough heat accumulated throughout the day or 2. The heat that was accumulated has been allowed to escape to the point the temperature drops to freezing. Drop Cloth—for a simple “Band-Aid” solution, the old standby, quick-fix is the drop cloth. Use any old bed sheets or blankets and make sure not to break any fragile branches. Placing stakes into the ground every few feet is a good way to keep the branches safe. This can work for fruit trees as well, depending on size. Remember to remove each morning after frost danger has passed. Mulch –Although not really a viable solution for protecting tomatoes or other large annuals, mulch is an option that prevents the escape of heat into the atmosphere and would generally be used on plants less than six inches in height, or to protect roots of perennials over the winter. In addition to preventing water loss, it acts as an insulator. Good mulches for autumn include leaves and other organic debris. Water—Water acts as a temperature pacifier and keeps the ambient temperature from fluctuating as much as it otherwise would in drier conditions. The key here is to ensure the temperatures at the time of spraying are not already close to freezing. Watering near or just before the warmest part of the day is best as long as most of the water does not evaporate before nightfall. Another idea is to use water that sits in a rain harvesting system that has been sitting in sun for several hours. Just be sure not to shock the plants by any sudden temperature changes when first spraying.  The following may be too late to start implementing this year, but these are some you may contemplate for future seasons…
Heat sinks—A heat sink is any physical body that collects the sun’s radiation throughout the day and releases this captured heat after dark. Such examples include large rock or brick masses, water tanks, and anything especially dark in colour. Remember that the effect can vary greatly depending on the type of material used as well as its colour. Experiment and do your own research. Elevation—the areas especially prone to frost depend on elevation. So which is it, the higher areas or the lower areas? Well, both actually. Cold air tends to sink to the ground and ‘pool’ at the lowest spots as if it were water. At the same time, areas on the peaks of hills are more exposed and the soonest to fall victim to cold air masses. So the best answer is whenever possible, plant the most tender plants in the mid-elevations. They will be protected by the higher surfaces and most of the coldest air will sink to the lowest spots first. Planting under a frost barrier—Finally, planting larger and less frost-sensitive plants and trees in such a way as they shield the lower plants from heat loss is an excellent way to keep the ground temperature from dropping to freezing. The general rule that works best here is, the less of the night sky that is visible, the less heat will be lost. Conifers or any tree with broad, over-hanging branches are good options. Just ensure that they will not shade out the plants, so planting these taller trees on the north side of fragile lower plants is a good solution. Finally, many root vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, turnips and so on can be kept in the ground for several frosts. Some say it actually enhances flavour. For extra protection, simply cover in a six-inch layer of mulch and in Calgary's climate, this should suffice for well into October. Remember that it only takes a couple of hours for frost to cause damage. iin most cases the best we can expect is about a few degrees maximum that we can affect the temperature. This is done by collecting the sun’s energy during the day and making sure it stays with the most sensitive plants at night. Sometimes though this can make a huge difference when the autumn sees just a hand-full of days that hover around freezing, followed by a couple of weeks of warmer nighttime temperatures. So take advantage of the longer growing season with these few simple measures against frost.  A must watch! For anyone who has ever been to or lived in New York City, this video will really hit home. Even if you haven’t, Sanderson’s visuals of Manhattan’s once natural ecologies are awe-inspiring—and he gives a surprisingly positive vision of what New York (or any urban area) could look like in the future. He even talks about how the multiple connections in the ecosystem are responsible for its resilience. My Commentary: It is so intriguing to imagine what the physical history might have been in a place you know so well in its current state. We often take for granted the complexities of life that existed before colonial settlements moved in--before we began to build so many human-oriented structures. Many times we just assume that, yes, there were trees, maybe some meadows, ponds--not much happening. This video reminded me otherwise. I am highly impressed with Sanderson’s interpretation in that he pays respect to the complex web of life that must have existed in order to support the 51 unique habitats on that land over 400 years ago. What is missing from his commentary, however, is the fact that Manhattan, like most urban areas, is highly dependent on input from the outside world. In fact, in its current state, it is nearly completely dependent on exterior sources for its food, building materials, and other life essentials for the survivability and daily living requirements of its inhabitants. That said, enjoy the talk and think about the tremendous impact we humans have on our living systems and how we might better adapt our living arrangements to harmonize with our natural environments. Enjoy the talk! |
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Author:Ted Bahr is the founder of Prairie Sage Permaculture. MORE Archives
July 2018
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