Whole Tree Architecture

I just could not resist posting this intriguing idea which I connected to at Inhabitat (not inhabit). According to the Forest Products Laboratory, a whole, unmilled tree can support 50 percent more weight than the largest piece of lumber milled from the same tree. Putting this principle into practice, Whole Tree Architecture is dedicated to building with materials that lumber [...]

How To Build A Rain Garden

I have been intrigued by the concept of rain gardens for quite a while and was delighted to see this article from my friends at Soulsby Farm – A Very Small Farm. It is the best article on rain gardens that I have come across. How to Build a Rain Garden Got rain on the brain? It [...]

Making Peace with the Land

I have just started reading Making Peace with the Land: God’s Call to reconcile with creation by agriculturalist Fred Bahnson and theologian Norman Wirzba. This is the seventh book in the resources for Reconciliation series. All I can say at this point is that this is a very profound book, one that I think is [...]

Earth Day To Do List from The Soulsby Farm

This may be a day late but it is so good that I could not resist reposting it -Thanks to the people at  Soulsby Farm – A Very Small Farm for posting it yesterday. Earth Day to Do List I had a big rant written but decided to make my Earth Day wish simple…. Let’s all put an end [...]

Evangelicals Do Care About Creation

This morning I am continuing my series on Christian organizations concerned about creation with a post of the Evangelical Declaration on the Care of Creation which is available through the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN). The EEN  is a ministry dedicated to the care of God’s creation. EEN seeks to equip, inspire, disciple, and mobilize God’s people in [...]

Good Seed Sunday – Celebrate with A Rocha

Today’s post comes from the A Rocha website. We are hoping to partner with them in the future in the conservation of the land where the Mustard Seed Villagewill be built on Camano Island. Beginning in 1983 with an initial project in the Algarve region of Portugal, A Rocha has been helping to change the face [...]

Weathering the Winter Storms – Lessons for the Soul.

Last week we had snow and then ice storms in Seattle. The city ground to a halt and anyone who could hibernated for a couple of days. Outside the trees were festooned with snow and icicles formed along their branches. How do they survive I wondered? Some of my time last week was spent researching [...]

Eating Weeds – Great recipes to try

Tomorrow we head up to Camano Island for the Celtic Prayer retreat.  One of our first tasks is getting the weed whacker out to clear the nettles and other weeds that have grown since our last visit, which probably explains why weeds are on my mind this morning.  Nettles which grow in abundance on Camano [...]

Can We Become Fossil Fuel Independent – Denmark Thinks So

Most of us think that independence from fossil fuel is just a pipe dream but Denmark is taking it seriously.  It certainly challenges me to look at other ways that I too can cut back on my fossil fuel energy usage. The Danish Commission on Climate Change Policy reported in 2010 that Denmark could be [...]

Healthy Edible Flowers – Wonderful Addition to a Salad

It is probably obvious that I am enjoying the garden at the moment.  We finally seem to have hit summer – while the rest of the country has been sweltering we have been having one of the coldest summers on record.  Anyhow the greens in the garden are wonderful and I just picked one of [...]