Biodynamic Gardening Notes 14 - 21 March

This week the moon continues to ascend until Thursday 15 at 11:25 when it starts descending until the end of the month. The descending moon is when the earth is breathing in and drawing growth forces back down below the soil surface. The lower parts of the plants, especially the roots, are activated.  Activities that take advantage of the descending moon include making and spreading compost, transplanting seedlings and trees, taking and planting cuttings, cultivating soil and spraying horn manure preparation 500,  manure concentrate and horn clay (Biodynamic Resource Manual, 51-53). View our previous post for more information about horn manure preparation 500.  Look for the synthesis of the waning, descending moon in an earth sign Saturday, Sunday and Monday evenings to apply 500.

Take advantage of the descending moon by taking all of the summer garden leftovers and making a compost heap.  Well made compost is gold for the vegetable garden and Autumn, being the strong digestive season, is a great time to make it so that it will be ready for spring!  This is also a great week to begin applying compost around fruit trees and to all of the perennial beds.

A Moon node will occur on Wednesday the 14th at 06:40. Moon nodes occur where the moon’s path crosses the path of the Sun. The influence of the node lasts for approximately 2 hours on either side of the node. The effect is similar to that of an eclipse of the Sun by the Moon and it is best to avoid any agricultural or horticultural work for this brief period (Biodynamic Resource Manual, 53).

The moon is in a water sign on Wednesday and Thursday until 11:30, although a planetary trine is ocuring in favour of an earth sign. Water signs are favourable for leaf plants. Earth signs, roots. During these trine periods, the effect of the moon is either intensified by the planets or decreased.  In this case, the planets are not supporting the moon in a water sign.

The moon moves into a fire sign on Thursday 15 at 11:30 until Saturday at 16:55 and the planetary trine in an earth sign continues on Thursday. Warmth or fire signs are favourable for fruit plants. These include all plants whose seed fruit we harvest: beans, peas, grains, cucumbers, squashes, lentils, corn, capsicums, rice, soya, tomatoes, zucchini, strawberries and fruit trees.

The moon then moves into an earth sign on Saturday at 16:55 until Tuesday morning. Earth signs are favourable for root plants. These included all plants whose roots we harvest: carrots, beetroot, celeriac, swedes, potatoes, turnips, parsnips and onions.

On Tuesday 20 at 00:28, the moon moves into an air sign which is favourable for flower plants. These include all the plants which are grown for their flowers, and where we want a long flowering time: garden flowers, medicinal and preparation flowers, bulbs and broccoli.

-Gardening Notes are compiled using Brian Keats Antipodean Astro Calendar; Maria Thun’s Gardening for Life; Biodynamic Agriculture Australia’s Biodynamic Resource Manual; Peter Cundall’s The Practical Australian Gardener; Louise Riotte’s Astrological Gardening; and the experiences and farm practices on Transition Farm

Links for more information

For more information about our Biodynamic Gardening Notes, visit our previous post About our Biodynamic Notes.

For more information about liquid brews for plant health, visit our Seasonal Notes page and click the tag “liquid brews” .

For more information about Biodynamics and to purchase biodynamic preparations, I know of three organisations in Australia:

Demeter Biodynamics at http://www.demeter.org.au/index.htm

Biodynamic Agriculture Australia at http://www.biodynamics.net.au

Australia Biodynamic- Victoria Inc.  at http://www.biodynamicsvictoria.org/

For more information about the Antipodean Astro Calendar, Biodynamic Planting and research and more visit Brian Keats’ website at http://astro-calendar.com/index.htm.

"Stinking Good" Corner

Even though it has been moist and cooler this past week, I feel the transition between spring and summer.  The evenings have more heat and last longer, the asparagus has finished, we are harvesting the first zucchinis, training the field tomatoes, measuring the corn each day to see if it is "knee high", enjoying our first batch of pesto and pea pasta and finishing off our spring jobs.

The past few weeks have been an excellent time for transplanting.  We planted flowers, herbs, melons, cucumbers and broccoli for the summer share.  We are trialing row covers for the brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) this summer.  The white cabbage moths need to land on the brassica plants to lay their eggs that hatch into the little green caterpillars, which can decimate young plants or just fill them with fat green caterpillars.   In principle, the row covers solve the problem - the butterflies cannot land on the plants. No eggs, no caterpillars.  It will be interesting to see if the row covers affect other aspects of growth.

We make extensive use of compost to amend our soil and enrich the humus matter. As most of the material we use in the compost is gathered from the farm, making a pile takes a few days.  We cut grass, thin out all of our wonderful micronutrient accumulating herbs, collect sawdust, shift the wood ash from a burn pile, and gather manure. Over the course of a few days, we slowly layer a 5m long*1.5m wide pile, using our seaweed brew to add moisture throughout.  Our spring pile is usually ready by autumn.

This past week, we have been spraying...the whole farm.  Biodynamic Agriculture, in addition to many sustainable agricultural practices, also includes a series of "preparations" which help to develop strong soil biology and plant growth.  In spring, we take advantage of the warm soil and moist air and "seed" beneficial bacteria and soil fungi which are the beginning of life under the soil and the building of the complex ecosystem which provides plants with optimum health.

We also use another preparation to aid with photosynthesis and to help plants with the uptake of minerals and trace elements. These two sprays together help strengthen plants against insect, fungal and bacterial attacks.

Transition Farm welcomed our first intern this week!  Despina will be doing a four-month internship with us learning about the practical application of farming with the moon and making and using different biodynamic preparations.  Despina is an accomplished gardener, and a trained permaculturist.  We are privileged to have her here.

In addition to these, we are spraying seaweed brew.  Seaweed contains 14 Amino acids and over 60 trace elements and minerals.  We use the seaweed brew as a foliar spray to give plants those trace extras in the same way as humans take daily vitamin pills.

We have also been using a stinging nettle and a Casuarina (She-Oak) brew to promote growth and tighten the fluid in the plants and prevent fungal infestations like powdery mildews, rusts and moulds (respectively).

With different brews at various stages of decomposing, our children have named the area of the farm with all of these bathtubs, drums and buckets "Stinking Good" Corner.

Next week, we will be weeding, training tomatoes, harvesting flowers and herbs for making preparations and spraying more "stinking good" brews.

This weeks companion planting article is Chamomile - The Plant's Physician.

Gardening notes for this week have also been posted.  These gardening notes offer further insight into the biodynamic and sustainable farming practices that we are using as well ideas for the home gardener.

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On the right of the Seasonal Notes page, there are links to previous posts sorted by month.  You can also click on any of the bold words under the heading “TAGS” and search for any posts on those topics.

Chamomile - The Plant's Physician

Chamomile

For over 2000 years, chamomile has been a garden herb favorite.  The famous Greek physician Dioscorides recommended it as a medicine for fever in 900BC.  It was one of nine sacred herbs for the Saxon's who used it widely as a sedative and calming medicine for the stomach (Brooke, 25). It was highly valued as a remedy for hysteria, insomnia, nightmares, convulsions, delirium, tremors of alcoholics, melancholy and a whole range of other nervous afflictions, especially of women (McIntyre, 153).

In the language of flowers, chamomile means patience in adversity (McIntyre,153).  It was known as the herb of humility because, as a lawn plant, the more it was trodden on, the faster it grew. Like a wise grandfather, it is able to calmly quell a tantrum recognizing that these fiery outburst usually stem from fear and anxiety.

Anne McIntyre describes,

The flower essence will soothe tension and anxiety and stop them from accumulating through the day to cause restlessness, insomnia and nightmares.  Chamomile will help one to stand back from the day-to-day things that irritate and annoy, and upset one's superficial equilibrium, and to find a place of calm and serenity where light, like the sun behind the clouds, is always shining .

Chamomile has a marvelous ability to relax smooth muscle throughout the body.  It is a famous remedy for soothing all kinds of digestive upsets, especially those related to stress and tension such as nervous indigestion, heartburn and acidity (McIntyre, 153-154). As it relaxes the nervous system, use chamomile for headaches, anxiety, insomnia, palpitations and general fearfulness.  Chamomile is a pain reliever and an excellent remedy for teething in babies.

Chamomile is a wonderful herb to use with children.  Think about Peter Rabbit's mother, who when Peter returns from his ordeal in Farmer McGregor's garden, wisely tucks him into bed with a warm cup of chamomile tea.  Chamomile is an excellent relaxant for babies and children.  It calms anxiety and nervousness.  It is well known for calming restless babies prone to colic, teething and sleeping problems, as well as overactive, irritable children (McIntyre, 28).  These results can even be achieved through a warm bath using chamomile infused water.

It has a long association with young maidens, used as a bath in Celtic initiation ceremonies and Beltane festivals.   It is very useful in relieving premenstrual stress (including headaches) and menstruation cramps.  Chamomile tea has been drunk throughout childbirth to relax tension and lessen the pain of contractions. It is also helpful to reduce menopausal symptoms.

As a natural antihistamine, chamomile is useful for hay fever.  It has an anti-allergic effect by reducing the body's response to allergens such as pollen and house dust.  Steam inhalations (putting hot water over the flowers in a large bowl and then covering the head and bowl with a towel or blanket and breathing in the infused steam) will help relieve hay fever, asthma, catarrh and sinusitis (McIntyre, 154). The anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties of chamomile help heal inflamed mucous membrane linings of the lungs and sinuses (Soule, 50).

In the garden, chamomile is like having little rays of sunlight mingling and poking through the perennial border.  It is a wonderful companion of cabbages, onions and mint and its unobtrusive nature makes it pleasant anywhere in the border.  It is also a micronutrient accumulator harnessing calcium, potassium and phosphorous (Woodrow, 35).

Chamomile posy

In Biodynamics, the chamomile preparation promotes a good breakdown of the proteins in the compost to humic plant nutrients, and prevents the protein breaking down to ammonia which would be lost to the atmosphere (Proctor,70).  It helps soil to retain nitrogen and calcium, keeping them in the living realm and preventing loss to the atmosphere.  Chamomile preparation strengthens the plant's regenerative life activity and reunites this with the physical (Biodynamic Resource Manual, 22).  This ability has led chamomile to be referred to as the "plant's physician" in folklore.  It has been said that if you have a failing plant, simply plant chamomile next to it and it will revive.

As a mother, a woman and a farmer, I love growingand nurturing plants that benefit humans, animals, plants and soil.  Chamomile is wonderful in its ability to comfort and aid all of the living things on our farm.  I delight in its mercurial quality of popping up in different places in the garden year after year and am always grateful to see it in the spring.

Linda Woodrow's Witch's Brew

To stop fungus diseases like powdery mildew use the following liquid brew.

-Gather stinging nettle, comfrey, causurina needles and/or chamomile. -The first three are high in silica, which is water-retardant and so creates leaf surface conditions unsuitable for fungi.  The chamomile is a mild fungicide. -Cover the herbs with water and let the mixture brew for just TWO days. -Dilute 1:10 and add to perennial seaweed brew. -Spray zucchini, squash, cucumber, pumpkin and anything else you think is susceptible.  The same mixtiure is a foliar fertilizer so there is no worries about over using. -This brew works well if you catch the infestation early and only if the brew is fresh - after no more then 48 hours' brewing.  After this it is still a great foliar fertilizer and compost additive but it does not work against fungus.

-An Astrological Herbal for Women by Elisabeth Brooke; Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs by Scott Cunningham; The Yoga of Herbs by Dr David Frawley and Vincent Lad; Herbal Healing for Women by Rosemary Gladstar; The Complete Floral Healer by Anne McIntyre; Grasp the Nettle by Peter Proctor with Gillian Cole; The Roots of Healing by Deb Soule; The Permaculture Home Garden by Linda Woodrow; Biodynamic Resource Manual by Biodynamic Agriculture Australia

Nettle - The Growth Stimulant of the Garden

Despite its cruel sting, there is always room in our mandala circles for nettle.  It self seeds and spreads rapidly, "invasively" I have heard some say.  But as I am so fond of this herb, not only as food for my family and a medicinal herb for acute ailments, but also as an incredible micronutrient accumulator and plant tonic for the whole garden, I have never minded its habit of being everywhere.

Nettle grows easily in temperate climates.  The stinging hairs of the fresh nettle contain formic acid and histamine, and have a long history of therapeutic use.  The Romans, when they entered cold and damp Britain, used to flog themselves warm to ward off the illnesses and infections rife in that weather.  In South America regular stinging has been used to stimulate the circulation, even in serious conditions such as gangrene.  Galen recommended the friction of the leaves against the skin to increase the circulation and stir up 'natural heat', to stimulate desire and cure impotence. The nettle's sting has given it a symbolic meaning of cruelty and spite (McIntyre, 229).

The tough fibers of the stalk are used in fabric making.  Remnants of nettle fabric have been found in burial shrouds that date back to the Bronze Age, and it is still used today to make cordage and fabric  (Gladstar, 250).

Nettle is a great example of Hippocrates' adage, "Make food your medicine and medicine your food".  Nettle is a gourmet green.  Lightly steamed, served with olive oil, lemon juice and a bit a feta, it makes a wonderful early spring addition to a meal.   Nettle can be substituted in any spanikopita recipe making a lovely, wild, tasty delight.  You can also pickle spring nettle tops by layering them in a mason jar and topping them with one part apple cider vinegar and one part olive oil.  You can add garlic cloves and cayenne peppers. Ensure that no nettles surface above the liquid.  Let the herbs marinade in the jar for several weeks or even months (Gladstar, 250,251).  We also add nettles to simple quinoa soups and our "green eggs", a light omelette with nettles, spinach, lemon thyme and chives. In fact, my children tease that the green in most dishes in spring is probably nettles.  The formic acid wilts when the leaves are steamed or cooked and will no longer sting.

Nettles are highly nutritious, rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and one of the highest sources of digestible iron in plant form.  They have been used throughout history as a nourishing tonic for anaemia, fatigue, edema, menstrual difficulties, allergies and hay fever.  They stimulate the liver and kidneys, cleaning the body of toxins and wastes.  Used as a tea or cooked into food in spring, they help restore vitality to the system.  Nettle enrichs the blood and nourishs the nervous system.  Being hot and dry, it helps the body to release excess mucous from the lungs and colon.  Made into an ointment, nettle helps to relieve irritating skin conditions such as eczema.

In ayruvedic medicine, the nettle has a cooling energy and a pungent effect (Frawley and Lad, 209).

Nettle leaves are safe for pregnant women and provide a nourishing, iron rich tonic which can be drunk throughout the pregnancy.  Mixed with red raspberry leaves, borage leaves, and fennel seed, nettle provides a nourishing postpartum tea for rebuilding strength and adding nutrients to breast milk (Soule, 57). Because of its high Vitamin K content, it helps control and prevent haemorrhaging (Gladstar, 251).

Nettle is a friend to women experiencing menopause.  Warm nettle and sage-leaf tea helps reduce night sweats, and nettles in combination with other herbs such as oat straw, red raspberry leaves, borage leaves and Siberian ginseng, support the body through this changing time by increasing low energy levels and helping to overcome fatigue (Soule, 57).

Nettle builds and empowers the fire element in a person.  It helps a person who is cold and angry to break through their self-pity and victimhood.  It is for evoking the will and contracting the warrior within (Brooke, 162).  Nettle helps people to express and thus release their anger and through its expression to relate to others more openly (McIntyre, 229).

In the garden, nettle is an incredible micronutrient accumulator.  It accumulates sodium, sulphur, nitrogen, calcium, potassium, iron, manganese, chromium, zinc, magnesium, boron and copper, even in soil that is deficient.  This makes nettle a valuable addition to the compost pile and an excellent plant and soil tonic.  While we have nettle growing throughout the garden, and this does sometimes result in children and adults being inadvertently stung, it would also be well placed next to a compost pile where it could be easily harvested for the benefit of the pile.  This in turn spreads the micronutrients to the whole garden.

In Biodynamics, nettle is one of the compost preparations.  According to Dr Rudolf Steiner, the nettle is a plant with healing qualities for both humans and plants.  Stinging nettle conveys intelligence to the soil; helps proper decomposition, aids chlorophyll formation and stimulates iron, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sulpher activity in the soil (Biodynamic Resource Manual, 22).

If there were ever an herb most people would like to keep from their garden, nettle would be high on the list.  But in our garden, I treat it with the same level of care and respect that I have for all of our vegetables and herbs.  It is welcome in the nutrient rich beds because I value the health it brings to the garden and us.

Antidote for the Sting (formic acid) Bruise plantain or yellow dock leaves by chewing them slightly.  Place the poultice onto the affected area.

NETTLE BREWS

Stinging Nettle 24-hour extract Take 1 kg of fresh stinging nettle without root (it should not have gone to seed) placed in a suitable container. Pour over 10 litres of cold or luke-warm water. Leave it to stand for 24 hours. Sieve the juice and use as a spray for larvae or caterpillars, twice within a period of a few days.

Stinging Nettle Manure as a growth stimulant Use same proportions of nettle and water as for 24-hour extract. Leave it to stand until the leaves decompose. May take between three days and some weeks depending on the temperature. Dilute at a rate of 1: 10.  Spray twice within the period of a few days. This manure has a potent effect on growth and is sprayed on the soil either towards evening or in the early morning and watered well a few hours later.  The sap begins to flow more vigorously causing aphids and fungal attack to disappear.

As a general tonic for plant growth Dilute at the rate of 1 litre: 40 litres for water crops (eg. tomato, cucumber, spinach and cabbage). Dilute at the rate of 1 litre: 20 litres and stir for 15 minutes before spraying out through fine jets on to growing plants.

Deb Soule of Avena Botanicals has wonderful  nettle recipes for women -  from those just entering menses to those moving through menupause in her book The Roots of Healing (Published by Carol Publishing Group).

-Biodynamic Resource Manual by Biodynamic Agriculture Australia, An Astrological Herbal for Women by Elisabeth Brooke, Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs by Scott Cunningham, The Yoga of Herbs by Dr David Frawley and Vincent Lad, Herbal Healing for Women by Rosemary Gladstar, The Complete Floral Healer by Anne McIntyre, Grasp the Nettle by Peter Proctor and Gillian Cole, The Roots of Healing by Deb Soule, The Permaculture Home Garden by Linda Woodrow

Biodynamic Gardening Notes 26 October - 1 November

The moon is ascending this week until Sunday 30 October - the earth breaths out. We see this as growth activity above the soil surface.  Growth forces and saps flow upwards more strongly and increase plant vitality.  Although germination takes place below the ground, it also takes part in this upward striving.  This is the time to sow seeds, spray horn silica preparation 501, cultivate at the appropriate constellation before sowing, harvest on an air constellation plants for medicinal purposes, flowers and plants for preparation making and field crops such as silage and hay (Biodynamic Resource Manual, 51-53). On Sunday the moon begins descending.  Activities that take advantage of the descending moon include making and spreading compost, transplanting seedlings and trees, taking and planting cuttings, cultivating soil and spraying horn manure preparation 500 with manure concentrate and horn clay. View our previous post for more information about preparation 500.

November may be the last opportunity this spring to apply Biodynamic preparation 500.  It is best applied late in the day when some moisture has returned to the air and soil.  Depending on the season, December evenings can begin to be too hot for these applications.  Plan for an application when the moon is in opposition to Saturn on 9 November or with the synthesis of lunar contractions: descending, waning moon in an earth sign on Sunday 13th.  On both of these days, you can follow the 500 with an early morning application of 501 to balance the soil and the atmosphere.

The moon continues waning until the new moon on Thursday 27th, which is also the Perigee of the moon (when the moon is closest to the earth).  Watch for increase moisture, start of mildews and fungal infestations.  This moon is another "Supermoon" with wild weather worldwide predicted (Keats, 26).  The man who coined the phrase "supermoon" has his own website discussing what it is and means.  Please visit Richard Nolle for more information.

A tea made with fresh Casuarina (She-Oak) needles is useful to tighten the fluids in the plant, balance the water in the plant and prevent fungal infestation such as mildews, rusts and moulds.  For small areas you use 500 g fresh Casuarina needles.  Place the needles into a stainless steel saucepan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and then simmer for 20 minutes.  Use at a rate of 1 litre of tea to 40 litres water aiming at 1 litre of tea per hectare.

We also use a seaweed brew to help our plants reach optimum health which in itself can increase their resistance to pests and diseases.  Seaweed contains 14 Amino acids and over 60 trace elements and minerals.  You can make your own seaweed brew by taking bull kelp, chopping it up and half filling a 200 litre  food grade drum.  Fill with water.  You can also add Biodynamic compost preparations (available through Biodynamic Australia) or some of the micronutrient accumulating herbs to this brew (Search Companion Planting under Seasonal Notes).  Let it sit for at least a month, stirring occasionally.  When the brew stops bubbling, it is ready for use.  You can use bucketfuls of the tea to moist down the compost pile or use it diluted 1 :10 as a fortnightly plant tonic (like humans use vitamin and mineral supplements).  You can top up the water in the main brew and use it for 12 compost piles (Woodrow, 75).

Maria Thun offered that each activity we do for a plant such as seeding, transplanting and cultivating, when performed on the corresponding moon, further emphasize that quality in the plant.  For example, when we transplant cabbage seedlings during a descending moon in a leaf sign, we are taking advantage not only of the descending moon pulling the forces of that plant down and into the roots to minimize transplant shock, we are also emphasizing the leafy quality of the cabbage.  Sow seeds that produce above the ground during the waxing moon until the full moon on 11 November.  Sow seed that produce below the ground during the waning moon (time from full moon to new moon).

On Wednesday 26th until 17:08, the moon is in an earth sign.  Earth signs are favourable for root plants.  These included all plants whose roots we harvest: carrots, parsnips, radishes, beetroot, celeriac, swedes, potatoes, onions and garlic.  As the perigee is the following day, the chance for increased moisture is good for helping parsnip and carrot seeds to germinate.

The moon then moves into an air sign until Friday at 16:34. Air signs are favourable for flower plants.  These include all the plants, which are grown for their flowers, and where we want a long flowering time: garden flowers, medicinal and preparation flowers, bulbs and broccoli.

For the rest of Friday, Saturday and Sunday until 17:57, the moon is in a water sign. Water signs are favourable for leaf plants.  These include all the plants whose leaves we harvest: cabbages, cauliflower, parsley, coriander, lettuce, spinach, bok choy, silver beet, asparagus and fennel.

Sunday evening, Monday and Tuesday, the moon is in a fire sign.  Warmth or fire signs are favourable for fruit plants.  These include all plants whose seed fruit we harvest: beans, peas, grains, cucumbers, squashes, lentils, corn, capsicums, rice, soya, tomatoes, zucchini, strawberries and fruit trees.

This is a wonderful time in the garden.   Planting now ensures a summer filled with beautiful, home grown produce.  Crops that can continue to be directly sown during this month are French beans, beetroot, carrots, coriander, corn, cucumbers, peas (if it stays cool), potatoes, radishes, rocket, spinach, spring onions, sweades, turnips, winter squashes and pumpkins. Crops that can be transplanted are asparagus, basil, broccoli, cabbage, capsicum, cauliflower, celery, Chinese greens, eggplant,  flowers, leeks, lettuce and salad greens, parsley, silver beet, tomatoes and zucchini and summer squashes.

The white cabbage moths may again return this month.  If you see alot of the white "butterflies" flittering about in the garden during the day, watch your young brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) for signs of eggs and then the green larvae caterpillars. Manual removal works really well to protect young plants. Chickens will happily eat the caterpillars.  There is recipe for nettle brew which can help control caterpillars on our gardening notes post.  Peter Cundall offers another simple, safe and cheap method of control.

Spray the attacked plants with weak salty water.  It is easy to test whether the mix is strong enough because it can be tested on living caterpillars, starting with a dilution of two tablespoons of salt to a bucketful of water.  Spray directly on to the pests, and if the correct strength has been mixed, they will roll off and eventually die on the ground.  (The Practical Australian Gardener,64)

Germinating seeds and newly transplanted starts will need extra moisture to help their roots to establish.  Take advantage of earth and water days for irrigating.

For more information about our Biodynamic Gardening Notes, visit our previous post About our Biodynamic Notes.

-Gardening Notes are compiled using Brian Keats Antipodean Astro Calendar; Maria Thun's Gardening for Life; Biodynamic Agriculture Australia's Biodynamic Resource Manual; Peter Cundall's The Practical Australian Gardener; Louise Riotte's Astrological Gardening; and the experiences and farm practices on Transition Farm

For more information about the Antipodean Astro Calendar, Biodynamic Planting and research and more visit Brian Keats' website at http://astro-calendar.com/index.htm.

For more information about Biodynamics and to purchase biodynamic preparations visit Biodynamic Australia at http://www.biodynamics.net.au.

Ode to Borage - The flower of courage

In my attempts to write about companion planting, my musings which began so simply started to twist and turn, passing through plants that are friends, feeding the soil, beneficial insects, deterring insects, attracting wildlife, brightening the soul, curing ailments, making ecosystems... As I sought to stay on one tangent, I realized that maybe the best way to approach such a huge topic is by paying homage each week to one special plant and its relationship in our garden- And so I bring you, my plant of the week... Ode to Borage The Flower of Courage

With its bright blue, star shaped flowers that uplift their heads, blooming in our climate from late winter through to late autumn, borage brightens any garden and gardener. Borage was used to promote bravery on the jousting field and continues to be used to bestow courage. Borage has a relaxing effect generally and is said to dispel grief and sadness (75, McIntyre). The herbalist Gerard writing in 1597 said that a syrup of borage flowers 'comforteth the heart, purgeth melancholy and quieteth the phrenticke and lunatick person.'  For as the lion finds out, where does courage lie but in the heart.

Being an edible flower, borage brightens a salad, livens up a simple glass of water and makes beautiful cake decorations.  In ayurveda, borage has a sweet, astringent taste and a cooling action (Lad, 195).  The crushed leaves smell like cucumber.  Young leaves contain vitamin C and can be added to a salad.  Borage flowers are a wonderful addition to a birthing woman's bouquet and a soothing bath.

The blue colour attracts bees, and as they are blooming from late winter, they are excellent to put near your fruit trees.  Most apple, pear, sweet cherry and plum trees cannot produce fruit from their own pollen.  They require the lovely aid of the bee to take pollen from one tree to another, providing the cross pollination necessary.  In addition to fruit trees, strawberries flourish near a borage plant as do tomatoes and squash. Borage deters tomato hornworm and cabbage worms.

Borage roots go down 2 metres, mining the subsoil for nutrients and adding organic matter (Woodrow, 147).  It accumulates silica, potassium and calcium, makes good mulch and is a great compost ingredient.  As we started this garden on a sand dune very deficient in trace minerals and humus, borage has helped us build a well balanced top soil.

Externally, the fresh juice from the leaves can be applied to burns and to draw out poisons from insect bites, stings or boils.

Boarge self-seeds easily.  It is extremely hardy, growing in shade, sun, wet or dry, but the plants are easy to remove from places where they are not welcome, so it doesn’t become a troublesome weed (Woodrow, 147).

The multifunctional quality of adding borage to our garden has been incredible.  Our soil is being enriched, the plants are healthier and happier, the garden is prettier, the fruit more prolific, our stings have been soothed and our spirit is continually uplifted. As I sit amidst a sea of borage, calendula and fruit tree blossoms,  watching funny little wasps and bees that flit through the flowers, I give my gratitude to this lovely plant and marvel at the beauty of the natural world working harmoniously.

Flower Teas - from Deb Soule

Drinking a tea of any of the following herbs serves to uplift your spirit, gladden your heart, and nourish your nervous system.

Heartsease pansy flowers- 1 part Sacred basil leaves and flowers - 2 parts Borage flowers- 1 part Lemon balm flowers and leaves - 2 parts Lavender flowers- 2 parts

Dose and Use: To make a summer tea, place whatever proportions of these fresh herbs or others you have into cool water and let them infuse in the sunlight or moonlight or slowly heat to near boiling and steep, covered, ten minutes.  Drink 2-4 cups a day.

You can also add any of these herbs to an herbal bath. As Rosemary Gladstar says, "Herbal bathing can be soothing to a weary soul.  It is a bit hard to remain depressed for long while soaking in a flower-strewn tub surrounded by plants from your garden."

-Family Herbal by Rosemary Gladstar, Gaia's Garden by Toby Hemenway,  The Yoga of Herbs by Vincent Lad, The Complete Floral Healer by Anne McIntyre, The Roots of Healing by Deb Soule, How to make a Forest Garden by Patrick Whitefield, The Permaculture Home Garden by Linda Woodrow