What’s Inside
🥦 Garden To-Dos
✅ Timely Tips
🔥 Hygge Time
🥣 Tis the Season of Bone Broth!
🌕 Lunar Calendar
🥇 Calendar of Firsts!
“A weed is a flower growing in the wrong place.”
George Washington Carver
🥦Garden To-Dos
Vegetables
Seed Indoors - Broccoli, Kale, Cabbage, Head Lettuce, Celery, Kohlrabi
Look for the “Seeding Deep Dive” coming out in a few weeks. In that version of the newsletter, I will talk all about seeding indoors and how we do it.
If using older seed, you can test germination by placing seed in a damp paper towel and then placing in a ziplock bag. Place in a dark room and check daily for sprouting. Most seeds will easily germinate in a week’s time.
Flowers
Start seeds inside of perennial flowers by the end of January
Annual flowers with long germination periods like snapdragons and begonias can also be started inside
Soil samples. I’m gonna do it guys. I’ll report back ASAP. If you haven’t done it, you should consider it! I’m going to send mine here and get the “Complete Soil” test at the very top. If you scroll down you will see the “Soil Foodweb Qualitative Analysis” test. That one is really intriguing! Have I mentioned I’m obsessed with the Soil Food Web?
Mow down any fall planted cover crops in late January. Leave residue on soil surface and add lots of mulch on top. When it’s time to plant in February, pull back mulch and plant directly into soil.
Get garden beds prepared if they are not already settled and covered. If your garden has leftover weeds and is a mess from the fall and winter, do your best to remove all plant residue including the seeds of the remaining plants. Once removed, mulch heavily in preparation for spring planting.
✅ Timely Tips
Getting seed starting equipment ready for the upcoming seeding season: Prepare for the excitement of seed starting by organizing and cleaning your seed starting equipment. Check your inventory of pots, trays, seedling mix, and labels, ensuring everything is in good condition and readily accessible. Consider any additional equipment or supplies you may need and make necessary purchases in advance. Also, it’s not a bad idea to sterilize your seed starting trays. This will help prevent passing along any diseases. In the past, I’ve done this by submerging my trays in a bleach/water solution.
Dreaming up and planning the upcoming year's garden layout: Embrace the quiet of winter to envision and plan your garden for the coming year. Let your creativity flow as you imagine new plant combinations, consider crop rotations, and explore different layout possibilities. Sketch out your ideas and make a list of desired plants to guide your gardening efforts when the growing season arrives.
🔥 Time for some Hyyge
Ever heard of Hygge? It’s pronounced like “hoo-guh” and it’s a Danish term defined as “a quality of cosiness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being.” The Danes know a thing or two about living in cold weather; why not follow their lead and cozy up a bit and embrace the season with conviviality!
🥣Tis the Season for Bone Broth
Morgan loves bone broth. She tries to drink it daily. It helps with digestion, it’s warming, and its nutritious. She will save the bones from whole chickens that we eat but she mainly makes our broth out of the beef bones we get from our whole cow we purchase every year with our extended family. With that said, the best broth is made with the tail. That’s right. Ox tail broth is on another level of tasty. And the meat that falls off is an added treat. Highly recommend!
Bone Broth Recipe
“Bone broth is one of the most nourishing things you can put into your body and is so easy to make. That is if you have an Instant Pot. The idea of simmering bones for an entire day, smelling up my kitchen is a no go. So having an instant pot to do this is a game changer.
The great thing about bone broth is that it can be as simple as bones and water or you can add in more veggies and seasoning for a more flavorful broth/stock. You can use whatever you have on hand in the kitchen.
FINDING BONES
Where do you find bones to use for broth? I like to have a mixture of chicken and beef bones when I make broth. Having both seems to create a more gelatinous broth, which is what you are going for. I will save the carcass from my Whole Roasted Chicken and throw it in with 2 large beef bones. We get our beef bones from a farmer that we buy a half cow from each year. When we order we just tell him to save the bones for us. This is one of the best ways to have a constant supply of “free” bones. You can also get them from Whole Foods and maybe a few other stores if you ask the person in the meat department, but they will charge you.”
-Morgan
Cook Time: 180 min
Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 3 hours 15 min
INGREDIENTS:
BASIC BONE BROTH
Bones from 1 whole chicken
2 -4 large Beef bones ( that will fit nicely in your instant pot)
A few egg shells ( great source of calcium)
A Splash of apple cider vinegar (helps to pull the minerals out of the bones so that you are getting the max amount of nutrients into the broth)
A few pinches of salt
THINGS TO ADD IN IF YOU HAVE THEM ON HAND
A few stocks of celery
An onion
A few cloves of garlic
Veggie Scraps ( the ends of onions, carrots)
Herbs (rosemary or parsley would be nice)
DIRECTIONS:
Add everything to your instant pot.
Fill with water just below the max line.
Set your instant pot on manual high pressure for the max amount of time it will go or 180 minutes.
When your broth is done let the pressure release naturally.
Strain this liquid gold into jars and drink within the week. If you have extra share with a friend or family who is sick (such a good treat!) or freeze for later use.
🌕 Lunar Calendar
Early Native American tribes referred to the January full moon as the Wolf Moon, for it was during this period that the haunting howls of hungry wolf packs echoed through the night, just beyond their camps. The Wolf Moon was a name that captured the primal connection between nature and the tribes. Additionally, it was known by other names such as the Old Moon and the Moon After Yule, further reflecting its significance in marking the passage of time and the transition into a new year.
Look for the full Wolf Moon on January 25th.
🥇 Calendar of Firsts
We are beginning a new year! And… Spring will usher in A LOT of seasonal and calendar firsts. But… don’t overlook January and the winter season. Depending on how you choose to keep your calendar, you might roll over and start fresh for the 2024 year; others might like to keep it seasonally based. For example, if you keep a Calendar of Firsts that is seasonally focused (Winter '23/'24, Spring '24, Summer '24, Fall '24), your first snow fall in winter might be recorded in December. But, if you want to keep it based on an annual (Jan. - Dec.) calendar then you would record your first snowfall in January or February, even if snow had already fallen in December.
The truth is, it doesn’t matter. Whatever works for you! Because the point is to open our awareness to creation and the rhythms of the natural world around us.
I like adding the following as a reminder to myself and to you all:
A calendar of firsts serves as a meaningful tool to celebrate and connect with the ever-changing rhythms of nature throughout the year. Its purpose is to document and acknowledge the first occurrences of various events and natural phenomena that mark the transition of seasons. By recording the first blooming flowers, migrating birds, or changing foliage, individuals deepen their awareness of the subtle shifts that unfold in the natural world. This heightened observation cultivates a sense of awe and appreciation for the beauty and diversity of our environment. Moreover, a calendar of firsts invites us to engage in a deeper relationship with the natural world, fostering a sense of connection, mindfulness, and gratitude. It allows us to truly immerse ourselves in the present moment and develop a greater understanding of the intricate cycles that shape our lives and the world around us.
January firsts to be looking for:
Remember these are general examples for zone 7 in the southeast US. Specific occurances will depend on your regional climate and conditions. Keeping a personal calendar or journal will allow you to capture the unique experiences and observations of each month in your region.
First snowfall or flurry
First winter sunrise
First frost flower formation
First winter moonlit walk
First appearance of winter-blooming camellias
First sighting of a wintering owl species