As you might know by now, I like to periodically highlight plants we have at the farm and sanctuary. Today's pick is the False Indigo bush. False Indigo Bush in blossom - photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC This is one which we planted back around 2014 in various areas because it does well in wetter habitats. It is a native plant to the area that is also a nitrogen fixer, meaning that it adds natural ...
We got a lot done on our outhouse project this past Saturday! The materials on the left in the photo above were all donated to us by Bill Campbell, who teaches construction and engineering classes at the Saline High School. These were some leftover materials from his classes that were going to be discarded, but he snagged them for us instead!The base of the outhouse finished. It's bigger than it looks in the photo. The finished base with floor... ...
We would like to invite those who have spent time at the Farm and Sanctuary to submit inspired poetry, photos, or experiences from your visit. These then will be posted here for all to enjoy, and to feel together the connections being made within our shared human and nonhuman community. You may email your submissions to: crossinghedgerowssanctuary@gmail.com Sincerely, ~Your friends at Crossing Hedgerows Farm and Sanctuary~
A unique aspect of Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary and Farm is that we incorporate our spiritual practices with the day to day aspects of caring for the land and creating resilient systems. Sometimes it feels like a lot of balls in the air to juggle community building, ecosystem reparations, seasonal celebrations, and farm work. The mission of our nonprofit is extensive to be sure.To that end, the degree to which we can develop each of these aspects of ...
Primroses from our Spring Equinox celebration growing happily Here's what is going on at the Farm and Sanctuary this month. Our regular workdays will resume on Wednesdays and Saturdays, on Wednesday, June 15th after a two week break starting tomorrow. Saturday, June 18th (start time TBD): We will be building a composting outhouse with the help of Bill Campbell, who teaches construction/engineering at the Saline H.S. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are needing to ...
Spontaneous dandelion offering left by Charlotte for the Spirits of the Land For those who have not been to a recent work day, I would like to share what they are like and how they have been evolving, using our most recent one as an example. To begin, we take a moment to thank the Spirits of the Land for their abundance. We then spend awhile taking a walk around to see what is happening on ...
Our wonderful gathering today started with an excellent talk on Working with the Land Spirits by Sarenth Odinsson, and concluded with a Maypole Dance and potluck/bonfire. I thought you might enjoy some pictures. Thank you to Raven and Doug for taking such great ones! (Since we all danced together, we didn't have anyone to take pictures of the actual dance ❤️) And a big thank you to Alissa for coming early to help finish assembling the Maypole! ...
A current view of the woods... 🌸 Photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC
SUNDAY, MAY 22, AT 2 PM Our monthly Walk & Bonfire will also include a Maypole Dance and potluck to celebrate Beltane. 🌷 Free for all members. Please RSVP if possible. Thank you 🌞
One of the herbs we have in our Paw Paw, Aronia Berry guild is Lady's Mantle. She is one of the magical flora of the Druid tradition. "One of the most striking characteristics of this graceful plant is the way its leaves gather dewdrops. During the night the leaves fold like umbrellas, opening in the morning to reveal their watery treasure. Dew has been considered to have magical properties since ancient times, when in the Celtic ...
Honeyberry Flowers with Bumblebee by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC taken on 5/2/22I'm sure I could feature a different plant each day of the year and still not cover all of the various ones at the farm and sanctuary. And the same goes for the pollinators and various wildlife. So I'll share a little about Honeyberries (Lonicera caerulea) today, and hopefully you will enjoy it. :)The honeyberries, which are a type of honeysuckle with edible berries, are flowering ...
Photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLCAnother wildflower currently blossoming at Crossing Hedgerows is our white Virginia Bluebells. This plant was given to us by our friend Gary Urick, along with the Aconite which was mentioned in a previous post. According to the University of Wisconsin Horticulture, regarding Virginia Bluebells: "It is considered threatened in its native range, primarily because of habitat destruction and the prevention of natural flooding of rivers, and is increasingly found only in isolated locations." "The flowers ...
We spent a little time yesterday charring the end of the maypole so that it won't rot in the ground as quickly after we put it up. It was a relaxing and enjoyable process. We're looking forward to May 22nd! Wishing you all the best on this cross-quarter day. 🔥 Jean
One of the exciting aspects of the farm and sanctuary is the incredible diversity of plants and wildlife that has been encouraged to flourish - partly as a result of re-wilding, and partly as a result of purposeful planting. I have shared some tidbits about this in the past, and thought it would be fun to continue to do so.In that spirit... here are a couple of plants that are popping up around the farm currently. MotherwortCatnipI chose these ...
We have had a couple of our Wednesday work days now and they have gotten off to a great start. A few of us also had an event planning session this past Saturday which was quite productive, but I don't have pictures to share of that. 🤓 (As an aside, I never share pictures of anyone without permission first.) Emily, Blue, and Sarenth (not pictured) clearing last year's dead tomato vines out of the hoophouse - photo ...
It's hard to tell, but this log is about 21 feet long. Can you guess what it's going to be used for? Hint: it will be for something at our Beltane celebration coming up at 2:00 pm on April 30th. * * * * * If you guessed a Maypole, then you were right! If anyone would like to come help work on making it, we will be doing that on Sunday, April 24th - ...
Though we are having a bit of a cold snap this week, there are still plenty of signs of spring. The daffodils, crocuses and tulips are starting to come up, and the garlic that was planted this past fall has sprouted. We've grown garlic here off and on since 2014, so I thought you might enjoy seeing a few pictures of previous years' plantings and harvests.Garlic Sprout - April 5, 2014Garlic beds on June 18, 2015 - you ...
Red-Wing Blackbird returning for spring - photo by Brennah Yesterday turned out to be the perfect day for our Equinox celebration. It was sunny with cool breezes as we shared the crossing over time from winter to spring. We had 16 people who came out for our ritual, walk, and potluck... our little community continues to grow, thanks to the support of everyone here. 🪴Volunteer DaysVolunteer days will be starting again soon. They will be on Wednesdays at ...
Taken March 2, 2021One of the earliest flowers to bloom here at Crossing Hedgerows is Winter Aconite. It gives a splash of color in the late winter and early spring, and provides some of the first pollen and nectar for the pollinators. We planted it a couple of years ago, and it would be wonderful to plant some snow drops along with it as they blossom about the same time. So far it is only this tiny patch, ...
Icy area in the woods - taken on March 1st, 2022 by Brennah Sunday, March 13th at 2:00 p.m. - Member Walk & Bonfire Bring a dish to pass if you'd like. 🥧 We've had some warm days since the photo above was taken, and there has been quite a bit of melting. This is definitely the muddy time of year, so boots are highly recommended. You are also welcomed to simply enjoy the bonfire if ...