“Recipes” for Pine Needles

For anyone who is interested in making their own pine needle soap, fire-starters or cleaner, we’ve included the recipes below, as well as a list of other uses for pine needles! Let us know how your projects turn out!

_8100817Pine Needle Fire Starters

Ingredients

1 cardboard egg carton

Pine needles and cones

Old candles or candle wax.
1. Melt the wax

You will need to melt the wax, and you will need a double boiler setup for this. Any wax used in a saucepan or cooking pot will make the pot unusable for food. So, a good way to handle this is to find an old saucepan at the thrift store and use it, or you can also melt the wax in a clean glass pickle jar set into a pot of hot water.

2. Put the pine needles

3. Pour the wax over top of the egg sections

4. Let it dry
You only need to wait as long as it takes the wax to harden.

5. Break off one “egg” worth to start your fire!

Pine Needle Soap

Ingredients

 ⅔ cup coconut oil – to produce good lather

 ⅔ cup olive oil – which makes a hard and mild bar

 ⅔ cup other liquid oil – like almond oil, grapeseed, sunflower or safflower oil

 ¼ cup lye – also called 100% sodium hydroxide (find at local hardware stores)

 ¾ cup cool water – use distilled or purified

 Pine needles and/or pine needle essential oil

Method

1. Cover your work area with newspaper. Put your gloves and other protective wear on.

Measure your water into the quart-canning jar. Have a spoon ready. Measure your

lye, making sure you have exactly ¼ cup. Slowly pour the lye into the water, stirring

as you go. Stand back while you stir to avoid the fumes. When the water starts to

clear, you can allow it to sit while you move to the next step.

2. In the pint jar, add your three oils together. They should just make a pint. Heat in a

microwave for about a minute, or place the jar of oils in a pan of water to heat. Check

the temperature of your oils – it should be about 120° or so. Your lye should have
come down by then to about 120°. Wait for both to cool somewhere between 95°

and 105°. This is critical for soap making. Too low and it’ll come together quickly, but

be coarse and crumbly.

3. When both the lye and oils are at the right temperature, pour the oils into a mixing

bowl. Slowly add the lye, stirring until it’s all mixed. Stir by hand for a full 5

minutes. It’s very important to get as much of the lye in contact with as much of the

soap as possible. After about 5 minutes, you can keep stirring or you can use an

immersion blender. The soap mixture will lighten in color and become thick. When it

looks like vanilla pudding it’s at “trace” and you’re good to go.
4. Add your herbs, essential oils or other additions at this point. Stir thoroughly to

combine. Pour the mixture into mold(s) and cover with plastic wrap. Set in an old

towel and wrap it up. This will keep the residual heat in and start the saponification

process. Saponification is the process of the base ingredients becoming soap.

5. After 24 hours, check your soap. If it’s still warm or soft, allow it to sit another 12-24

hours. When it’s cold and firm, turn it out onto a piece of parchment paper or baking

rack. If using a loaf pan as your mold, cut into bars at this point. Allow soap to cure
for 4 weeks or so. Be sure to turn it over once a week to expose all the sides to air

(which is not necessary if using a baking rack). For a DIY soap drying rack, I took an

old potato chip rack and slid cardboard fabric bolts (from a fabric store) through the

rungs.

6. When your soap is fully cured, wrap it in wax paper or keep it in an airtight container.

Hand made soap creates its own glycerin, which is a humectant, pulling moisture

from the air. It should be wrapped to keep it from attracting dust and debris with the

moisture.

Clean up

When you’re done making soap, always clean your equipment that has been exposed to

lye. You can neutralize the lye with white vinegar, then wash the equipment well as you

normally would. For the rest of it, let it sit for several days. Why? Because when you first

make soap, it’s all fat and lye. You’ll be washing forever and you could burn your hands

on the residual lye. If you wait, it becomes soap and all it takes to clean it is a soak in hot

water.

 

About Pine Needle Cleaner

From diynatural.com

How: You can make pine needle cleaner by making a “tea” with the pine needles. Strain and put into a spray bottle.

Uses: the liquid can be used to spray on counter tops or floors to clean them and leave a fresh pine scent, as pine is naturally antibacterial and smells great!

Fun fact: Pine Sol was originally made this way.

 

Other pine needle uses

1. Place pine needles under acid loving plants such as holly, azalea, or rhododendron.

2. Place some pine needles in your winter garden to keep moles and voles out. This works well to deter cats and dogs from getting into your garden too. You will need to replace them often as the scent dissipates quickly.

3. Make a foot bath. Take a handful of pine needles and throw into a basin of warm water. Soak your feet in this for at least 15 minutes. The naturally antibacterial action of the pine will help to get rid of anything that may be lingering, such as athlete’s foot.

4. Ground needles can be used to make a soft green dye for cottons and other natural fibres.

5. You can add them to chicken’s nest boxes to help keep bugs out. They work very well on the floor of the hen house too. Mix them with pine or aspen shavings as they are not very absorbent on their own.

6. Make your own incense! Dry pine or spruce needles under low heat in a toaster oven. Grind up pine needles (mortar and pestle or maybe even a coffee grinder) and place a small mound in a fireproof bowl. Light the needles and enjoy the scent.

Thank you!

Last night we hosted our first event in the Seed for the Soul series, making creations with pine needles and engaging in a discussion about John Chryssavgis’ “Three Perspectives on the Sacred”.

We want to extend a big thank you to everyone who joined us last night, learning how to make pine needle tea, fire-starters, paint brushes and more! As well, thank you for sharing your thoughts, opinions (and snacks) with us and David Goa- it was wonderful to see the community come together and engage in a critical conversation about mindfulness towards ourselves, each other and the world around us.
Our next Seeds for the Soul event will be held on July 6th and the location and activities will be confirmed soon! Feel free to stay up to date by checking this blog, our Facebook page, by emailing us at spiritoftheland1@gmail.com or in person by stopping in at the office!

paintwax

Seeds for the Soul

This summer, we are hosting a three-part series called “Seeds for the Soul” exploring both practical skill building and intellectual engagement and reflection on our relationship with the land. Events are from 6 to 8:00 pm:

Seeds for the Soul - 4June 1 – Ronning House

July 6 – Camrose Public Library

August 3 – Camrose Railway Museum

We are excited to host these events and hope to bring together all levels of our community. Sustainability is not a niche interest and by creating positive spaces for ideas and skills to be shared, we hope to widen the Spirit of the Land community and empower Camrosians to engage in alternative practices.

Our Third Seeds for the Soul event will be held at 6pm on Wednesday, August 3t at The Camrose Railway Museum. We will be learning about companion planting. At 7pm, there will be a presentation and discussion with Bernice Kadatz on grassland restoration project and the importance of being connected with the land.
plants2Here is a video and an article you may watch beforehand as an intro into what we will be discussing together.

http://permaculturenews.org/2010/05/25/back-to-the-future-terra-preta-%E2%80%93-ancient-carbon-farming-system-for-earth-healing-in-the-21st-century/

We look forwards to learning about your version of sustainability and engagement with the land!

 

 

Reclaim Urban Farms

Tomorrow we (the interns) head back to Reclaim Urban Farm for our second day of urban farming! Reclaim Urban Farm (www.reclaimurbanfarm.com) is an urban farming business in Edmonton that partners with local landowners  to grow veggies using organic, sustainable practices in the heart of the city. We have the privilege of working as interns there roughly 4 days a month this summer. Besides helping out with the practical tasks of urban farming, our goal is to learn more about urban farming practices and ways that we might be able to implement urban farming systems right here in Camrose!

Our first day with Reclaim a few weeks ago allowed Carley and I (Kate) to get up close and personal with composting. We were located at one of Reclaim’s larger plots of land, where there were already veggies growing (I even got some fresh spinach for the salad I had brought for lunch), and one empty plot that was waiting to be planted. We started out by spreading some rich, dark compost over the plot while Ryan, one of the two farmers at Reclaim, rototilled after us. We also spent a good chunk of the day both turning and moving compost, which Reclaim receives from Earth’s General Store just down the street.

While this might not seem like a crazy impactful day, I can confidently say that it really was for a number of reasons. Firstly, Carley and I realized that four years of school does not translate into much upper body strength for shoveling, despite the long papers and furious note taking. Secondly, and more importantly, it was great to see something that we had talked about so much in classes happening right before our eyes. While both Carley and I compost in our homes, we both use the oh-so-convenient system the town provides us with–we throw our household food waste into a compost bin that gets picked up weekly or bi-weekly, depending on the time of year, and somehow, somewhere, the city of Camrose turns our stinky, decomposing, unwanted waste into gorgeous, dark, nutrient-rich dirt that is excellent for gardening. Of course, I understand how the process works. But to see the steps of composting in action, from the lovely, earthy smelling dirt we spread over the plot as a nutrient booster, and compost in the process of decomposing, was an excellent learning experience. I can assure you, the food in the process of decomposing was less of a beautiful thing (we didn’t even know that food could smell quite like that), but it was really interesting to shovel the compost and see how some had already turned into dirt. And then there was the steam! It happened to be a fairly cool day, and as we began shoveling some of the more dense piles of compost, wisps of steam came up from the pile. While we had heard of compost producing heat before due to anaerobic breakdown of food waste, seeing it in action was quite the surprise. That stuff gets hot! Anderson (the other intern) had told us about a heating system that uses the heat produced by anaerobic compost. I was skeptical at first, but can now see how that could really happen.

It may have been a stinky day, and we may have been pretty sore the next day at the office, but it was also incredibly rewarding to finally “be getting our hands dirty” (both literally and figuratively) in sustainable agriculture! It all reminded me of Aldo Leopold’s warning: the two more dangerous things to believe are that food comes from the grocery store, and heat comes from the furnace–we need to be connected and recognize our dependence on the natural world. Likewise, our time at Reclaim reminded me that believing food waste miraculously turns into dirt when the city comes to take it away is perhaps easy, but also dangerous.

All that to say, we are looking forward to the next two days at Reclaim, in which we will be doing some transplanting and market prep. Who knows what else we will learn in the process!

Screen Shot 2016-05-25 at 8.00.50 PM

Neighbourhoods

We have recently started reading “The One-Straw Revolution” by Masanobu Fukuoka, who explores the limits of human knowledge and questions traditional and industrial understandings of farming and food. Through a more holistic understanding of our relationships with land and community, Fukuoka emphasizes that, “[I]f one fathoms deeply one’s own neighborhood and the everyday world in which he lives, the greatest of worlds will be revealed.”

This quote brought to mind a lovely photo that Rajan took of Treva and John, two community members who are deeply integrated into their neighbourhood and community.

As we begin our work with Spirit of the Land, we are excited to delve deeper into the wealth of knowledge and connection that this community has to share. While these “great worlds” may seem to be far in the distance, it is through actions of love, gratitude and simplicity that we can create positive and sustainable change.

 

John and Treva on Bike

Spring is here, and so are the Interns!

_8100624Spring is here, and so are the summer interns at Spirit of the Land! Spirit of the land has hired three interns for May to August, and we have now joined the office! Over the summer, we will be looking at ways Spirit of the Land can improve current programs, further explore and develop programming opportunities, educational events, and community partnerships.

We are so excited for what this summer holds. It is a summer of exploring opportunities, dreaming big, and seeing what lies ahead for Spirit of the Land. We would love to see more year-round engagement and opportunities for the Spirit of the Land community, and are hoping that this summer, we can investigate ways to make that happen. While we have just started, we are already working on next year’s course and conference.

We are thrilled to be here, excited to see where the next four months will take us, and looking forward to sharing what this summer holds with you!

The Prairie Peace Convergence

Greetings to those from far and wide who check into this digital space or remain subscribed to the blog. You are here for a reason! The spirit of the land continues to resonate with you. Thank you for sticking with us.

I hope you’re able to join us in person or via #ds106radio (http://ds106rad.io/listen/) for the Prairie Peace Convergence on February 27th.

This innovative gathering hopes to bring to light the places in our community that cry for justice, as well as the places where we see reconciliation growing. This work is diverse and it calls for passionate people who are dedicated to the people and places they serve. I can think of no better group of people to invite.

This will be an eclectic group, as you can imagine. It will draw from our First Nations neighbours of Maskwacis, to our settler neighbours who dedicate their lives to growing our food. It will include those who imagine a different type of education and those who have been excluded from traditional educational spaces but hold the rich knowledge of life experience. It will be a space to meet across divides and imagine what transformation can look like when all are included.

If you’re interested, please stop on by or be in touch with Carmelle Mohr carmelle@ualberta.ca (just so we know to look out for you).

Thanks for all the work you do.

A warm hello

Hello, dear Spirit of the Land Community!

Many of you I know, and some I do not, but having been in the Spirit of the Land class as a student a few years ago, it is this space that connects us through time. We share this in common, and it is from this common place that I wish to share with you all a story, followed by an invitation. For what may have been the first time, I developed a sense of understanding of what building community really meant, and even more, what it felt like. This happened through our Spirit of the Land gatherings, dinners, and conversations. What a gift. Since leaving Augustana, and embarking on a rather nomadic post-grad life (living the dream!!), it is this sense of community I seek to find and participate within, wherever it is that I am. It can happen in the smallest and strangest of ways, but it all starts with a very simple gesture – of holding open a safe space to connect with one another and hear one another’s voices.  Only through recognizing all members, their stories, knowledge, and presence as essential to the whole, can we find ourselves in a place where we can move forward together, in a shared journey to amend, heal, reconcile, learn, and dream. Very recently, I had the unexpected opportunity to reconnect, in person, with the Camrose community that has never been far from my heart. Having the gift of time as I am deciding where I am going (or staying) next, I am happy to be helping with an event taking place on February 27th. This is the Prairie Peace Convergence, and it is our hope that space can be safely opened for all voices to be heard as we seek to discover what peaceful communities can look like. We warmly welcome you to participate, and to offer your needed voices. I hope to see you there, reconnect with you if we have met before, or meet you for the very first time.

Kolby

Prairie Peace Convergence | Feb 27 2016

 

what if 4The next Spirit of the Land and Chester Ronning Center gathering! All are welcome to participate!

the prairie peace convergence

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On Feb 27, all people of the Alberta Prairie – of Indigenous, Immigrant and Settler story – are invited to gather as one prairie community; the starting place from which we learn how, and are compelled to, live well together with the land.

Find out all about it here! Grow the excitement and start the conversation on Facebook!

 

 

Feb 27 2016 | Camrose AB | Treaty 6

1:00-6:00pm (Potluck to follow)

Free! All are welcome.

 

 

 

Just when you think you know it all

by Jessica Ryan

I’ve heard dozens of speakers on all sorts of thought provoking topics in the last couple of years here in Camrose. Hearing Dr. James Makokis speak at the Making Peace with the Land conference at Augustana Nov. 14 was a different experience entirely.

James Makokis - MPWLJudging by the rapt attention, the unified susurrus of reaction and the stunned discussion afterward, I think I can honestly speak for a majority of the audience when I say it rocked my worldview.

It was something like I imagine it might feel to find out you were adopted. The ground shifted under my feet. I felt myself a stranger upon the land I’d taken for granted was conquered territory. After all, countless empires have risen and fallen since recorded time began. There have been invaders and the invaded, rulers and exiles. My ancestors were driven out of Ireland by revolt and famine: what’s the big deal?

I thought I understood that axiom about history being written by the victors, but the resulting incomplete picture makes it all the more certain we’re doomed to repeat history.

I confess, I have always had greater regard for civilizations that built impressive structures and wrote stuff down. But having been offered a glimpse of the sophistication of an oral tradition like that of the indigenous people of this area, I begin to see how arrogant is my way of thinking.

Just how great is Western civilization anyway? A couple thousand years of philosophical thought and the net result is a rabid individualism that leaves most of the earth’s population in war, poverty and ecological devastation and puts the wealth in the hands of first-worlders who are alienated from their work and any meaningful community.

Is this a gross generalization? Yes, but that’s the point. The nuances are likely there to be pondered by scholars, but everyone else is living the reality of a society founded on the primacy of private property and framed by the commoditization of the land and everything on it.

The conferences’ first speaker, Norman Wirzba, asked the audience to imagine being free from the imperative to look out for number one – to feed, shelter and clothe oneself, plan for retirement, etc. – and instead know there is a community looking out for you, with all the mutual responsibility that entails.

It’s not a utopian dream, though. There’s that uncomfortable passage in the New Testament (Acts 4:32-35) that very few people seem to have taken seriously since the time of the early church.

“And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common…Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.”

I doubt our society will change instantly, but I believe this picture of community is something to aspire to. Among many other worldviews, the merits of which I had not previously considered.

First published in the Camrose Canadian, Nov. 26, 2015
Written by Jessica Ryan, Editor