Wild Moon Cottage is a small working homestead in the pristine Ozark Mountains. We have dairy goats, poultry, organic herb and vegetable gardens, a start of a tiny fruit orchard, several black walnut trees, wild berries and fields of wildcrafting goodness. We raise our own milk, our own eggs, much of our own medicine and food. I do laundry by hand, make my own vinegar, candles, soap, bread, cheese ........ For a living I am an artist and herbalist. My goal for myself and our homestead is to be as self sufficient and self sustaining as possible.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Planting Rituals

I think the mere act of planting is ritual. Carefully tilling the soil, burying each tiny new life in it's own little womb, beads of sweat falling down in offering, nourishing with Mothers milk (water), the sacrifice and joy of aching muscles, sun warmed skin, tired eyes.

Those simple acts all part of forgotten sacred ritual.

But I do also make prayers. Prayers of thanks, mainly.

My favorite gardening ritual comes in the deep of summer tho, when the plants are all up and healthy, the nights rise hot and humid and the rain falls straight down in big fat drops. Then I sneak out in the quiet of darkness and dance wildly among the plants and the earth and the rain, with only the wildfolk watching :)

Juli April 08

6 comments:

marjean said...

Good luck with the honey man...if just talking to him makes you smile for three days it may be worth while getting to know him better...or maybe not...you may discover less to make you smile. :)
I love an early morning walk/dance in my garden. When I get back from my 5:30 walk I pull on my boots to do a walk-about our property. It's so quiet, peaceful and green!

Jj Starwalker said...

Wonderful post! I have been doing my own gardening ritual these days, as I pull weeds... I am doing the garden entirely by hand (no tiller... partly not my choice but I am making it be by choice) and it feels very right. Each inch of my acre (+/-) I will have felt, touched, run my fingers through its topsoil... This is truly the way to get to know a new piece of earth. Also helps to deal with the runner grasses when you pull them!

BarbCarol said...

I will be doing nighttime gardening this next week -- too much daytime heat for me. It's a whole different world at night.

mel said...

YES!!!! I so agree....wholeheartedly and ecstatically agree!! I feel closest to everything when I have my fingers in the soil....

*sigh*

Now that is pure magick!

oldcrow61 said...

Mel said it perfectly for me.

Grace said...

Hello, Juli...Namaste :)

I found you by way of Autumn Meadows blogroll and I'm so happy that I did. I'm an avid gardener (although these days, it's primarily container gardening...that will change soon, I hope, as my girlfriend is going to turn a portion of her backyard thats been let go into a "community garden" of sorts.

ANYWAY, planting IS a ritual..it's a prayer...its a Teacher and a Student. And it connects me with the Mother in ways that no other activity does. Thank you for sharing this!