July - Nature Inspired Home and Garden

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Star of Nature

Nature

Modern Farming

Growing Your Own Food

Growing Your Own Food: Why Organic is better?

Why organic is better? If you like gardening and grow your own food, is it worth the effort trying to do it organically? Modern farming offers many apparently quick and effective methods of dealing with problems caused by the lack of water, poor soil, pests and diseases. Shops are full of chemical solutions to such issues. Is it worth using traditional, old-fashioned farming and gardening methods, that may be more time-consuming and less effective? To learn more read a post at Star of Nature.

How To Grow Raspberries

Growing Raspberry: a Perfect Fruit Bush for Any Garden

Raspberry is a wonderful small fruit bush, suitable for almost any garden. It is undemanding and easy to grow. There are many different varieties, including red, purple and yellow, early and late. In a larger garden, with a space for several cultivars, it is possible the have raspberries from early July and into mid autumn. To learn more about growing raspberries read a post at Star of Nature.

Growing Blackcurrant – a Star of Northern Gardens

Blackcurrant has been cultivated in Europe since the Middle Ages, first as a medicinal plant and later also as fruit. It is a beautiful and versatile shrub that has many uses in cooking, cosmetics and medicine. Growing blackcurrant is easy and enjoyable. In fact it is a perfect plant for a small garden. To learn more about cultivating and using blackcurrants, read a post at Star of Nature.

Herbal Bath Tea Recipes for Relaxation, Energy and Beauty

Baths are healing and relaxing, particularly when taken with aromatic herbs, oils and salts. A combination of warmth, scent and simply an opportunity to switch off and enjoy some quiet time have a powerful therapeutic effect. ‘Tea’ is an incredibly simple and convenient way to experience a restorative, aromatic bath. Moreover, herbal bath tea recipes I give in this post are designed to address specific cosmetic and well-being aims. To learn more read the post at Star of Nature.

Best Home-made Herbal Toners for Dry Skin

Herbal toners for dry skin are quick and easy to make at home. Preparing them yourself is the best way to ensure that they contain only pure, beneficial ingredients. Natural, home-made cosmetics are becoming increasingly popular as we learn more of the health and environmental risks of many chemicals routinely used by the beauty industry. To learn more read a post at Star of Nature

Lemon Balm or Melissa – Is it Good for Bees?

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) is an important plant for beekeepers. This is evident already in its name: melissa is a Greek word for 'bee'. There seems to be, however, some confusion as to what exactly is its role and in what way is it good for bees. To learn more read a post at Star of Nature.

Pumpkins

Cucumbers And Tomatoes

Pumpkin Carving Designs

Pumpkin as a Decorative Climber: the Useful and the Curious

Pumpkin has been a favourite with gardeners for a very long time as a vegetable and as an annual decorative climber. Old gardening books point out that it can be cultivated without much effort. Unlike cucumbers and tomatoes, pumpkins are perfectly happy to grow in open air. To learn more about growing pumpkins as decorative climbers read a post at Star of Nature.

Medicinal Wild Plants

Medicinal Herb

Natural Insect Repellant

Hippie Life

Tansy: What is it Used for?

Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) is a beautiful and easy to grow perennial that has been used as medicine, preservative, insect repellent and spice. In herbal medicine it is a treatment for a wide range of conditions. Its antibacterial properties are so great that meat coated in its flowers stayed fresh even in the heat of summer. It can be used to make a natural insect repellent for home and garden. And finally it is a spice. To learn more read my blog post. #wildflowers #medicinalplants #tansy

Wild salad: Why should we eat foraged greens?

Why should we eat wild salad greens when cultivated salads are so widely available? Foraged edible plants are becoming more and more popular. Many people are trying to learn about wild food by reading about it and attending practical courses. But is it a good idea? Are wild greens any better than cultivated salads?

Elecampane (Inula helenium): Ancient ‘Sunflower’ of Europe

Elecampane (Inula helenium) is a flowering perennial and one of the most important plants in traditional European, as well as Chinese and Tibetan medicine. In this post I explain how to grow it in the garden, how it was used as medicine in the past, and how it is still used as a culinary spice today. #elecampane #inulahelenium #gardening #medicinalplants #flowers #wildflowers

Review of Les Crowder and Heather Harrell, ‘Top-Bar Beekeeping: Organic Practices for Honeybee Health’, the best introduction to beekeeping for beginners and experienced practitioners. Bee Products, Good Introduction, Bar Top, A Book, Heathers

Les Crowder and Heather Harrell, Top-Bar Beekeeping: Organic Practices for Honeybee Health: a Review

'Top-Bar Beekeeping: Organic Practices for Honeybee Health' by Les Crowder and Heather Harrell is the best introduction to top-bar beekeeping currently available. It is a book I would recommend to everyone, not just the beekeepers. It teaches techniques that allow bees to thrive without the use of chemicals. It also educates about commercial beekeeping, honey and other bee-products. They are marketed as ‘healthy’ and ‘natural’, but is this true? Read my blog post to find out. #beekeeping #bees