Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – thegreenerdream

Chakra blanket

October 25, 2020October 25, 2020mariamayfleming

If you are a regular reader of these ramblings you will know that we like to recycle and reuse as many things as possible and prevent waste. Last year, when younger members of the family moved away to study, we wrote about making off to college blankets in this post.

Since then I have decided to set off on my own college adventure for a four year BA Hons. in Fine Art at IT Sligo. I have dreamt of studying art and drawing for many years and it is lovely to finally get the chance. I will stay for a few days every week in a small student apartment and wanted to bring something along to remind me of home. So I came up with the chakra blanket. A creation completely made out of wool remnants from others projects and odd balls found in the charity shop.

I think there is great inspiration for projects like this to be found in Nature. The above image shows a progression from yellow to green to blue…

I started writing this post some weeks ago and by now I spend most of my time in my student flat. We don’t have a lot of on campus time but the WiFi at home is just not up to scratch for online classes. So the blanket is a lovely reminder of home as I work on the course material during the week. In these uncertain times I think it is important to stay hopeful and happy. The bright colours work as an antidote to any unhappy or uncertain feelings. The colours of the individual chakras reminds me that I need to look after and be mindful of the whole of me and also all those around me.

As Ireland has entered another six weeks of lockdown I am grateful for the social bubble policy that allows me to come back home for the weekends and spend the rest of my time in my student flat. I am so busy with my studies that there is little to no time to spend worrying. I hope you find yourself in a similar hopeful and restful place. Stay safe!

The pledge of the Polar Bear teeth.

May 18, 2020May 18, 2020mariamayfleming

In the early nineteen nineties one of us was helping a friend clear out an attic in Utrecht, Holland and came across the stuffed head of a Polar Bear dating from about the eighteen twenties. The Bear’s head had probably spent over a hundred years hidden away in the dark and now it was crumbling to the touch and sadly ended up in a skip. We found it incredibly sad, that a majestic, splendid and very intelligent being was destined for this fate. We managed to rescue the two canine teeth from ending up in landfill and have kept them ever since.

March

April 5, 2020May 5, 2020mariamayfleming

It has been a beautiful month in the garden and now more than ever we realize the importance of supporting the local eco system by encouraging nature to run wild in most parts and use part of the land for growing food and medicinal plants. With the increasingly grim reports of the virus ripping through communities and countries, we have found solace in the simple acts of engaging with wildlife and plants. We believe that life cannot go back to the way it was before this pandemic as capitalism has stretched the natural resources well beyond limits. This is the time for starting a more harmonious relationship with nature and we are great admirers of Mary Reynolds and her ARK project that is gaining strength throughout the word. You can read about it here.

We think humanity has a real opportunity to steer away from mindless overconsumption and build strong communities by producing food locally, eat what is in season, have holidays close to home, work from home when possible and share ideas and skills in new and creative ways. Many small local businesses are struggling at the moment all across the world but when the lock down is lifted we need to support all of the wonderful people who work hard to create a sustainable and vibrant local community. We must put Mother Nature first. We believe it is time to shift our aims and values away from “what can I get?” and concentrate on “what can I give?” We think Jane Goodall sums it all up pretty well in this video.

In February over one hundred frogs came back to visit our small pond where they were born and now the water is absolutely teeming with tadpoles.

In the annual vegetable garden we have been harvesting kale and sprouting broccoli every day for the past three weeks and started to clear the beds for the spring planting season. For many years we lived in places without a garden and back then we “grew” most of our vegetables inside. Sprouting is a great way to add nutrients and colour to our diet and we wrote about it in a post a few years back. For information about sprouting and tasty recipes please visit the wonderful Sproutpeople website. If you are at home this might be an ideal time to explore this easy and cheap way of producing food.

The lockdown in Ireland has given us time to study from home but also all work together on putting up a small poly tunnel for tender crops and seedlings. It has been lovely working together for a common goal.

Around our main circle spring is well on its way and we have been busy weaving a low fence around our cardoon and artichoke beds. We cut back a lot of our bamboos and coppiced some ash trees for materials. This should stay in place for at least five years. We still have one fence to complete.

East

South

West

North

We hope you will all stay safe and well in the challenging weeks and months ahead. Our hearts are with all the frontline workers in hospitals and in food production and distribution. We are staying at home and living as self-sustainable as possible to try and stay out of their way. It is not a sacrifice but a privilege to spend time close to nature and with each other as a family. We are very lucky to have running water, a home to call our own and a piece of the earth to be the guardians of. Many many people in poorer countries are not so lucky and for them the crisis of this virus will be much more devastating. We need to give them as much solidarity and help as possible.

November soil

December 18, 2019mariamayfleming

We think that the most important thing to do in any garden is to look after the soil. There is so much going on in the ground and the research into this field is we believe yet in its infancy.

Chalk paint ventures.

October 16, 2019mariamayfleming

A couple of items needed a makeover recently in our home. One was an old door that we traded for another old door from a friend a few years back. Due to lack of time it had been left in the shed until now, when it has been transformed into a stylish and original bathroom door. We love recycling and changing furniture and fixtures, creating something useful from something old. The door is perfect for our bathroom and thanks to the glass panels it lets in lots of lovely natural light to the kitchen.

Celebrating community gardening.

September 16, 2019November 4, 2019mariamayfleming

It has been almost a year since we last wrote about the Community Garden that we are part of in our local town, Ballaghaderreen. A lot has happened in that time and we would like to share some of the highlights with you here.

Making leaf mould last autumn.

Less impact.

August 24, 2019August 24, 2019mariamayfleming

In today’s world it is quite easy to feel overwhelmed. Climate change, Biodiversity loss and various worrying political scenarios can make us feel powerless and downbeat.

The green sanctuary.

August 7, 2019mariamayfleming

A sanctuary is a holy and sacred place. The more time we spend in nature, the more we realize that our sanctuary is all around us. Since starting the work on the land about six years ago we have been working towards creating a place for us, but equally a place where plants and animals can thrive and coexist on fair terms.

Celebrating the Colours of July

July 24, 2019mariamayfleming

We went outside to capture a few of the beautiful colours to be found in the garden at this time of year. We do not belive that you can have too much colour and we never plan any colour schemes. Most plants are allowed to selfseed, mingle and grow to their hearts content.

A vintage dream.

May 30, 2019mariamayfleming

For the last couple of days we have had almost constant rain and we decided it would be a good time to finish up the interior of our tree house so that friends and family can enjoy it. It has been a few years since we started building it and the large beautiful rowan that was growing next to it has since blown over in a storm. At the moment it has hops and a lovely climbing rose twining their shoots up the structure and the hazels are slowly growing up to replace the lost rowan.