Ep. 12 How to Create a Middle Earth Themed Garden

If have ever had the desire to create a Lord of the Rings themed garden or food forest - this is for you. If you having, we just might inspire you to doing this very thing! Imagine a space in your yard that reminded you of the Shire, Rivendell, or the gardens of healing in Gondor. Yes, the knowledge of the lore of middle earth botany runs deep in this podcast episode, as does the knowledge of the plants in the Lord of the Rings. If the Lord of the Rings were filmed in Florida, these are the food forest plants we think Tolkien would have used.

Keep in mind, the principles taught here can be applied for any themed garden space...

... creating a food forest for women's health

... a tea or bamboo garden

... an all white garden

... a children's gnome or fairy garden

... or even a black light responsive garden

Designing themed food forests can be a creative way to experience abundance for the mind, body, and spirit. Not to mention, your garden is practically like a canvas waiting for you to begin painting with the plants. So, join us as we "nerd out" and create a middle earth themed food forest.

If you liked the episode, feel free to tell us about it!!

Link to the food forest designer website!
https://permaculturefx.com/how-to-plant-a-food-forest-part-4-installing/

Let's be real - farming and homesteading are a blast, but can also very exhausting. With all of the joy also come pain. Sometimes, even with lush gardens, we can feel a little barren inside our hearts. Both activity and rest are natural parts of our built in rhythms, but so is rest - deep and genuine rest. Once and a while though, we each face burn, but for whatever reason, homesteading burnout just seems to hit different.

In this podcast episode, we'll talk about some of the common causes of farming burnout, both gleaning from our own experiences, but also the many homesteaders we are deeply connected with. Then we'll share some of the practical ways have have found success in overcoming burnout, which ultimately helped us navigate through the journey... finding our passion again at the other side. If you (or a loved one) has ever felt the pain of burnout while farming... you understand how challenging it can be. But how we walk through it makes all the difference, especially for our family and loved ones. Join us on this journey as we talk about a reality that we each face at some point in time.

If you liked the episode, feel free to tell us about it!!

Link to the food forest designer website!
https://permaculturefx.com/how-to-plant-a-food-forest-part-4-installing/

Weeds, which are often referred to as the right plants in the wrong places, can be a nuisance for some food foresters and gardeners. In this episode, we'll share ways to control weeds in a food forest or agroforestry system. Before we jump in, we'll talk a bit about why they are there in the first place. Understanding the concept behind their presence in the landscape will help us navigate them in our own garden spaces.

This episode covers weeding strategies like hand-pulling tips, smother crops, edible weeds, adding beneficial understory plants, utilizing chickens and livestock, burning, and more. Weeds and other understory can be utilized in a way that provides for pollinators, cover the soil, and build organic matter. However, as land stewards, it's our job to orchestrate their presence and work with the natural processes.

So, instead of working against what nature is doing - let's learn to help nature accomplish its goal of covering the soil and building organic matter.

If you liked the episode, feel free to tell us about it!!

Link to the food forest designer website!
https://permaculturefx.com/how-to-plant-a-food-forest-part-4-installing/