Sacred Tree Profile: Apple’s Medicine, Magic, Mythology, and Meanings

The Druid's Garden

“Nothing gives more yet asks for less in return, than a tree: particularly, the apple” –Johnny Appleseed

« As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, so is my loved one among the sons. I took my rest under his shade with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. » – The Song of Solomon

Spirit of the Apple – from the Plant Spirit Oracle (www.plantspiritoracle.com)

All summer long, we have had so much rain and thunderstorms.  Penn Run, a small creek behind my home, once again overflowed, raising several feet for a time.  When the waters had subsided, I was delighted to find delicious wild apples lining the banks–the river had carried them to me as a blessing for this wonderful Fall Equinox!  It reminded me that I have been wanting to write of the apple–of her magic, of her folklore, and of her abundance=. And so…

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Self-Portrait

Bonnie Kelso

I’ve never enjoyed creating self-portraits. But, for some reason I just created one, and really enjoyed doing it! I was suddenly inspired by a weird painting I saw in the background of an episode of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. It was a framed painting of a woman standing next to her cat. In the episode a woman from the 50s is being scolded by her parents for allowing her marriage to end. I was only half watching, because I was really drawn to the painting hanging on the wall of the woman’s bedroom. Even now, I’m not sure what it symbolized.

I guess there’s the stereotype of the lonely woman with no husband and only a cat for a companion. It could have just been there as some sort of subliminal symbol. I wonder how much this has really changed over the years.

Anyway, for some reason I really…

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Trip To Aquarium

Plants and Beyond

Spending time with a Friend and her lovely daughter was a real treat during one of these weekends. She introduced us to local Florida Aquarium and it was a great thing to visit on a scolding hot Summer day. Unbelievable what form of life is prevalent in deep waters. There are lots of creatures but will share the ones I never saw before.

I was so amazed at life that formed under water. As much as I marvel at the earthly nature, these water inhabitants were fascinating as well. Poor little fish was trapped inside the fish tanks and I thank them for dedicating their lives to human curiosity.

Surprisingly very fast moving jellyfish

Guess what that is? Haha. That is a baby jellyfish. Not waste 🙂 as I thought prior to being educated

This octopus was changing colors from orange to blue. What a precious soul.

Pink birds

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Hedgehogs Galore

How sad and beautiful is your post ❤

rambling ratz

The news about hedgehogs is rather depressing at the moment. Repeated studies suggest that our favourite wild native mammal is quietly disappearing from our lives. The latest study suggests that they are doing particularly badly in rural areas. It is lazy and ill informed to blame badgers as the survey shows that they too are absent in many of the same areas. Besides, badgers have predated hedgehogs and competed with them for food for thousands of years without putting a dent in the population. It is more likely that modern agricultural practices have produced a barren landscape for our wildlife.

It now behoves those of us who have access to gardens and allotments to do what we can to help hedgehogs. We should avoid poisons such as slug pellets and pesticides; leave a wild patch including log piles and leaves; plant a variety of flowers that attract insects and make…

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The Plant Spirit Oracle Project

The Druid's Garden

Spirit of the Oak from the Plant Spirit oracle!

As we’ve been exploring over the last few weeks, plant spirit communication can take many forms.  The rustle of leaves outside of your window, the inner knowing, or the song a plant sings to you as you honor it for the harvest. These simple messages weave a complex landscape beyond what we can sense with our fives senses, and invite us deeper into the mysteries of the earth and all living beings. And as we’ve explored, the voices of the plants, the spirits of the plants, take a number of forms and can appear to each of us uniquely. What is clear is that the more that we open ourselves up to understanding them, honoring them, and working with them, the more connection we have with the living earth in her many forms.

Part of the reason I’ve been sharing so…

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Edible Cranberry Hibiscus Shrub

Plants and Beyond

It is so very nice to have kind and caring friends. It is a rarity nowadays to come across a genuine person. Although, a rarity of homegrown food should be a thing of the past and a way of wholesome life. 

Yesterday, super fun, honest and sweet friend brought her own homegrown cranberry hibiscus for my family to try. I was quite surprised and amazed to taste a real flower brewed in the freshly boiled tea cup and not an old store-bought tea packet. The deep maroon color is spectacular, authentic and the taste is quite potent. Just a couple of brightly colored hibiscus flower leaves will do perfectly for a home-brewed cozy tea beverage.

Very grateful to have this dear person, who restores my faith in humanity; moreover grateful for being inspired to write this post. Because of the authentic lady friend, these beautiful edible flowers are being shared…

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Magical Sunset

Beautiful 🙂

Plants and Beyond

This sunset was truly magical. Thank you my sweet pooches for taking me outside to get refreshed and mystified. If you, my furry angels, would not take your mommy for an evening stroll, this nature’s gift and beauty would not be witnessed here.

Get outside, dear friends. Obsorbe the Nature’s bounty and rebalance your spirits.

Vitamin G is waiting for you. Ground yourself and release all the unwanted energy.

Feel renewed and refreshed.

Have a magical day, my friends.🖼

Luda@PlantsandBeyond🌿

All photographs belong to Luda @PlantsandBeyond.com

©PlantsandBeyond.com  

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Fitall Plug

rambling ratz

This is a deviation from my usual nature based posts and is one for the historical electrics geeks out there. Going through Grandpa Ratz’ impressive collection of tools we found this handy gadget; a Loblite Fitall plug.

By moving the black plastic lever, brass pins would drop down in different configurations to fit into the varying types of sockets that were around during the 1960s. Apparently there were 5A, 13A and 15A sockets in those days. From reading discussions by people who used Fitall plugs it seems to be an electric shock waiting to happen.

It also seems to not live up to its marketing hype either; I quote from the wonderful Museum of Plugs and Sockets: « The Fitall plug is useless for Wylex or Dorman & Smith sockets. » So much for fitting all! You can read many more details about this plug, with lots of photos…

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The Ancestors, the Descendants, and the Stones

The Druid's Garden

The Stone Circle at Four Quarters

What would our descendants say about this time period? How would we, as a people, be written into their histories? What stories would they tell of us? Perhaps our ancestors would say that this was a time of recklessness, willful ignorance, of extravagance, and of excess. They might mourn the loss of ecological diversity and habitat that we did not protect, they would lament the loss of cultures and languages, the loss of so many things. Perhaps our descendants would say that we pillaged the land and many of its inhabitants by not knowing how to curb our own greed; that we were victims to our own quest for abundance; and that we filled the air with carbon simply because we wanted to move faster.

Or, perhaps, our descendants will tell a different story. Yes, they would say, the larger culture and government leaders…

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Plant Spirit Communication Part III: Spirit Journeying

The Druid's Garden

Plants have been teachers and guides to humans for millenia. Deeply woven into our own DNA are receptors for certain plants and plant compounds. Our ancestors understood this, and in different parts of the world, cultivated thousands of medicinal plants, healing plants, teacher plants, for use on mind, body, and spirit. While the physical plant can offer much to our bodies in terms of healing, strengthening, and support (which is the basis of herbalism practice), plant spirits can offer the same thing to our hearts and spirits.  While there are lots of ways you might go about doing this, one useful tool is to enage in plant spirit journeys.  This is the third post in my plant spirit communication series; if you haven’t yet read the first two posts, go here and here.

Journeying is a catch all term that describes « inner » experiences that people have where they go…

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