The Flora category honors the plant life that shapes and sustains Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary. Native shrubs, wildflowers, thicket species, medicinal plants, food forest guilds, and botanical companions all form part of a living landscape designed for ecological restoration and spiritual reflection.

Plants are teachers. Through them we learn about succession, resilience, cooperation, and interdependence. Native wild plums, serviceberries, pawpaws, hazelnuts, hawthorn, prickly ash, dogwood, and countless other species contribute to layered habitats that support insects, birds, mammals, and humans alike.

Many posts highlight native plant restoration and the importance of preserving species that are disappearing under industrial agriculture and development. Others explore edible and medicinal uses, seasonal changes, and the beauty of blossoms, fruit, and seed.

At Crossing Hedgerows, flora is both practical and symbolic. The thicket shelters wildlife. The blossom feeds pollinators. The fruit nourishes community. The pattern of growth reflects divine geometry written into creation itself.

In this category you will find plant spotlights, photo journals, ecological insights, and reflections from the forest — all rooted in gratitude for the green world that sustains us.

Photo Journal: Ironweed

By |2026-03-07T04:31:27+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora|

"When one sees Eternity in things that pass away, then one has pure knowledge."~ From the Bhagavad GitaIronweed beginning to blossom Ironweed in bloomDried Ironweed in AutumnIcey Winter Ironweed Ironweed is a native perennial plant which grows at Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary along with other native wildflowers such as Joe Pyeweed, native Asters, Milkweed, and Goldenrod. It blooms in the late summer and fall, providing late season support for pollinators, giving food for butterflies and bees. It's striking ...

Tree Pruning Party Pictures

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora|

Pear tree before pruning     Pear tree after pruning     Apple tree before pruning     Apple tree after pruning     Peach tree before we harvested the peaches     Peach tree after pruning   Gary the master pruner   Brennah putting tree salve on the cuts   Brennah putting tree salve on the cuts   ...

Event: Pruning Party!

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora|

Peach tree before we harvested the peaches   Saturday, August 30th - Noon to 4pm Would you like to learn how to prune fruit trees? Our friend, Gary Turner is going to come work with us on our apple, pear, and peach trees to get them in better shape for being able to produce fruit better. You are invited to come hang out, help carry the pruned branches away, and learn about pruning from Gary! ...

A Little Peek

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, News|

Lily in the wildflower garden   Hello friends! I made this video yesterday to give you a little peek at how things are looking here at the Sanctuary right now. And I want to give a big thank you to Alissa for coming out to the work day on Saturday! In the middle of the video you can see an area in the hoophouse that she and I did a lot of cleaning ...

The Power of Belief

By |2026-03-04T01:46:53+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, Holistic Health, Musings|

What I teach and write about here may seem eclectic, but there is a central theme running through all of it. The way we can treat the land, our homes, our bodies, and each other in a generative way... all of our well-being stems from understanding the deeper mysteries of the realm we live in. The beliefs we hold (along with the ability to discern truth) are more powerful than anything else. When this is filtered through ...

Resurrection

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora|

Food Forest Guild Part 2 * The word “guild” in this usage is a group of plants that can thrive together as you would find in a forest habitat. It has the layers found in a forest - tree, shrub, herbaceous, ground cover, and sometimes even vines. The different plants all serve various purposes… edible, pollinator friendly, medicinal, windbreak, etc. This weekend we are celebrating Christ's resurrection. It’s lovely how the plants show us ...

Food Forest Guild

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora|

Hi everyone! Thank you all so much for your patience as I’ve been away taking care of family matters. ❤️ I took this video yesterday and thought you might enjoy seeing how things are looking here this spring. I’d like to do more of these to post here if you enjoy them. https://youtube.com/shorts/SB71VqEKPnY?feature=share I’m looking forward to getting back into the swing of things with you all, scheduling more events hopefully starting in mid May or ...

Spring Equinox (Alban Eiler) Celebration ☀️

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora|

Crocus flowers - photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC   Saturday, March 22 at 2pm The Sun is returning from the underworld and we now step from the dark half of the year into the light half. Join us as we welcome in the spring! The Spring Equinox Celebration will include a Druidic Alban Eiler ceremony at the Stone Circle, as well as a potluck inside the hoophouse following. We will also take a walk ...

Natural Bird Feeder

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Birds, Fauna, Flora|

https://youtube.com/shorts/JZtsGGHV-hA?feature=share A video of birds feeding on dried crabapples at Crossing Hedgerows Farm and Sanctuary in late January. Crabapples Wishing each of you peace and blessings, Jean

Meetup for the Earth Element and You

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora, Holistic Health|

Saturday, January 25th at 2:00 pm Your body is what connects you to the physical material realm. Join me for a discussion of your body as part of the earth element, and a nature hike led by self-taught naturalist, Brennah Cavanaugh. Jean connecting with the earth (not enough snow to make a snow angel!) As always we will talk about ways to take care of ourselves and the land, looking through the lenses of both ...

Seasonal Card Sets from Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Birds, Fauna, Flora, Insects, News|

  We are happy to announce that we're now offering seasonal note card sets with photos taken at Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC. 🐝✨ Each set comes with five different cards related to one of the four seasons.   honey bee in peach blossom   Brennah's photography is taken with a professional Nikon DX camera. She uses a macro lens and a telephoto lens for various shots. All her photos are completely ...

Event Reminder: Autumn Equinox (Alban Elfed) Celebration

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Events & Celebrations, Flora|

Saturday, September 21, at 4pm - Ceremony and Potluck   marigold seeds   native coneflower seeds   zinnia seedhead   The seeds that were planted this spring are now producing seeds of their own. The cycle continues. How can you see that in your own life? As we celebrate the balance of day and night and begin to turn towards the dark half of the year, you can allow yourself to ...

The Giant Button Bush – An Update

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, Insects|

In July of 2023, Brennah made a post here about the importance of our native button bushes to the pollinators at Crossing Hedgerows. Of course it has beautiful photos, including the incredible blossoms: https://www.patreon.com/posts/86598986   button bush - after the flowers have faded   It's hard to do justice with pictures to show the size this particular one has grown to now, but it has grown quite large indeed! And I want to give a ...

Rewilding

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora|

🦋 These are a few of the wildflowers and some of the scenery currently at Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary. There has been such a variety of butterflies, bees, insects, pollinators, birds, and wildlife this year… it has been incredible.   ironweed   evening primrose   monarch butterfly   boneset   🦋 Inviting in so much diversity to our ecosystem over the years has truly paid off. We have done very ...

Farm and Sanctuary Update

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, News|

pawpaws   🍈 Our pawpaw fruits are getting bigger!! ...shown with my hand for size comparison (and a ground cover of lemon balm underneath). 🍈 We planted the pawpaw trees nine years ago and have waited eagerly for them to start producing. Not only are we thrilled to see our largest one begin fruiting now, it is also coinciding with another wonderful development at the farm and sanctuary. Exciting News... 🍈 We are anticipating the ...

Black Willow Donated

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora|

This morning I planted a black willow tree that was donated by friends of the sanctuary, Rocky and Lucinda. We add it to our collection of various types of willows on our land, most of which are the shrub variety.   black willow   Willow catkins are one of the earliest sources of food in the spring for pollinators. Willows also help clean the ground water, provide wonderful materials for crafting, and of course bring ...

Did You Know?

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, News|

... that we are part of the United Plant Savers Botanical Sanctuary Network?     A few years back I sent in an application with documentation of some of the various endangered medicinal plants we have growing at the sanctuary. We were approved to be part of the network, and you can find us listed at the United Plant Savers website.     Besides medicinal plants, we have a wide variety of other native plants around the ...

Friends with Benefits!

By |2026-03-01T03:30:33+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora, News|

Yes indeed! Being with us at the Friends level or above here on Patreon comes with benefits! Along with various discounts, you are welcome to visit the Farm and Sanctuary at any time with your family. Simply get in touch so that we can know you will be coming and make sure everything is welcoming for you.   The composting outhouse     Each week there are significant changes to the land as flowers come ...

The Food Forest and Beyond

By |2026-03-01T04:10:50+02:00January 31st, 2026|Flora|

Spring is in full swing at the Farm and Sanctuary! So I wanted to give you a small tour of the current beauty and abundance! As most of you know, we specialize in perennial food crops at Crossing Hedgerows, and have planted a food forest nearby the house. We used permaculture design to create this food forest, which I love to talk about when we have folks out for walks. Every year it becomes more and more ...

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