Reaping what I’ve sown. . .

Gaia blessed my first garden with abundance. The various tomato vines were quite rewarding. I enjoyed the Yellow-Pear heritage and Roma tomatoes best, both were extremely flavorful and firm inside. The differences between our homegrown and the store-bought were significant, and well-worth the effort.

August 28th was a banner day!
My largest single-day harvest from the garden - tomato and eggplant stewed and served over polenta; fresh mozzarella with tomato and basil - delightful!

Marilyn, one of the Gold Sex-link hens, laid the first egg in the hen house. A pretty, brown egg measuring 1.846-inches. [Who knew we had a set of engineer’s calipers in the shop?]

Marilyn’s second egg measured 1.945-inches and by September 12th they measured 2.227”. She continued to be the only hen laying until about the 12th of September.

Now, at 21-weeks old, the Black Sex-link and one of the Australorps have also begun to lay.

Everything I’ve read has said that “hens lay first thing in the morning.” Well, not mine, at least, not yet. The first egg usually appears about 10:00, and the Black Australorp seems to like to get into the nesting box about 3:00 in the afternoon. Perhaps as they get older and the days get shorter, this will change. But, for now, these girls are truly My Chickens, where, preferably, “first thing” doesn’t happen before ten.


I’ve noticed a significant change in behavior with The Girls. Once a hen has produced an egg, she is much more willing to be petted and picked-up. It’s happened with each one - where before the hen would run away from me, now they squat at my feet and allow me to stroke their feathers. They no longer squawk when I lift them.

I saved the first egg’s shell. Now it rests on my Altar for Abundance and Joy. With this strong magic at the center of my life, I celebrate the Harvest.

Interesting things I’ve harvested online:
http://www.myspace.com/kttunstall
http://www.myspace.com/brucespringsteen

Have an Excellent Equinox,
Julie Epona

House of the Mooning Dragon

I visited my dear friends, Sarah and Larry, this past week at the home in Mt. Shasta. The prevailing wind often turns their delightful Dragon to ‘moon’ the road. Today, she was enjoying the flowers with me.

Sarah is a gardener extraordinaire with the eye of a trained artist. Her gardens have inspired me for years. I call S. my “4-H Mentor” - she gives me advice on gardening and chickens. She’s also taught me to knit and bead, but those are stories for another day.




While my garden is bursting with tomatoes, Sarah’s is a riot of flowers: Poppies, Black-eyed Susans, various types sage and lavender, and lots of others whose names I can’t remember.



The Iris Labyrinth is a wonderful walking meditation. At a quiet, meditative pace it takes several minutes to complete the 11-levels to the Center and back to the Eastern entrance. When the Iris bloom it should make for a rather spectacular presentation, a colorful meditation, "Tout, touta, tout, tout, throughout and about. . . ."

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Sweet Taste of Summer

Yesterday I ate the first little, ripe tomatoes from the Yellow Pear bush - sweet, juicy, still warm from the sunshine.

WOW! Thank you, Goddess. What a delightful, sweet reward for all the work of gardening. I've never been able to grow anything prior to this. I'm very thankful I listened to Her prodding to plant a garden this year. The blessing of eating from the garden is more fulfilling than I had expected.

Today there are 3 more tomatoes ready for lunch.

Another diversion - Playing paperdolls online with the Yahoo Avatars. What fun! A great way to spend the afternoon when it's 100+ degrees outside.

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Garden Delights

The Garden is thriving! Each of the tomato plants is bursting with tiny, green fruit. I’m seeing canning lessons in my future.



The sunflowers tower over me with thick, green stalks. The eggplant is now showing buds below its thick, green foliage.

There have been a few “volunteers” in the garden: a white Petunia, one small Pink. The wild Sweet Peas have finished for the year. Still no buds on the Morning Glories.

Each evening I water. Each morning I look for what new surprise the Garden has for me.
My first harvest of Purple Bush Beans tasted divine, very sweet. The harvest was one, small handful, and I enjoyed it immensely.

Watering, watching, cultivating - She is giving me a sweet lesson in patience.

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Growing Season

I can’t believe it’s June already!

The garden is growing like topsy. The sunflowers are almost 3-feet tall, the Yellow Pear heritage tomato has tiny green fruit, the others have lots of blossoms. The Bush Beans are almost 10-inches tall, looking lush and green.

The Girls are now pullets. They love the salad scraps and weeds from the garden. Soon they’ll be scratching outside in their run.

The lilies are full of buds, as is the lush ground-cover around the house. Everything looks about to burst into full-bloom.


We have visitors to the garden - our tree-frogs have returned from hibernation.

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Lovely Spring Rain

Today we received 1-inch of rain, just enough to water the garden and trees around our home. The ground-cover I’m encouraging is very happy - glowing with new green growth.

I spotted the first tiny blossoms on the tomato plants today! They are all growing vigorously. The tiny lettuces are struggling a bit, I’m sure they will enjoy the warm weekend that is forecast.

This morning I saw that all of the fir trees have sprouted tips of brilliant spring-green. The new growth looks as if the fairies have decorated for Beltane with green lights gracing the trees.

As it rained outside, I cleaned inside, dusting and rearranging the various altars throughout the house. I’ve planted the seeds of many new beginnings this Spring - the coming season will be very busy, indeed.

I hope you enjoy sharing this adventure with me.

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Blessed Beltane

Hip hip Hurray - the First of May
It's absolutely beautiful outside today!

The prayers and invocations I said while planting the garden seem to be helping. Despite the surprise April snow and freezing nights of early spring, everything is thriving.

The sunflowers are almost 3 inches tall and the beans are beginning to appear. The tomatoes are growing robust and the baby lettuces each have several leaf clusters, albeit there still less than 1 inch tall.

The Chicks are growing by leaps & bounds. Happily they are getting less and less skittish when I appear. The Ameraucanas are the most mellow, they seem to like to be held. This weekend I moved the chick's box off the dryer and into the Hen House, they adjusted just fine.

Today I'm watering the garden and ground-covers. It's time to weed the little pathway in the veggie garden - a great way to give "the girls" their first taste of fresh greens!

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

Chop wood carry water

Until very recently I’ve always lived in the city. Now, I find myself out in the country - way out - and my spiritual practice has changed significantly with the move.

I am learning to stay “in the now,” grounded, quite literally, to the land. A Zen parable says that before enlightenment we “chop wood carry water.” After enlightenment we “chop wood carry water.” Luckily, I mostly carry: branches, debris, leaves to the burn circle; and water to the garden and pots.

Watering the garden has become a peaceful meditation. I search the pots and raised bed for new sprouts, enjoy the variations on green that Nature creates, and take pleasure in the smell of the Earth as I water, encouraging the garden to grow.

I’ve carried yards and yards of fallen branches, saplings, and brush to burn. I’ve found myself communing with the trees, explaining to them that by clearing the duff from around them and the low hanging canopy from their trunks I’m working to protect them from the ravages of forest fire. I ask their blessing and protection while I work. I’ve felt their peace and understanding.

In the Fire Circle I call forth the Dragon of the Circle to light the fire. It’s taken some practice, but I can now start a fairly large fire with one piece of newspaper and a match - provided the pine needles are dry. I enjoy the challenge of keeping my Fire sacred and have rejected the common practice among the old-timers up here of starting the brush-burns with diesel or gasoline. Each time I invoke the Dragon I call Him forth to consecrate the Fire, keep it within the confines of the Circle and protect our home from the ravages of unbridled fire in the forest.

This weekend I will light my Beltane fire and watch the Moon rise over our trees - celebrating the sacredness of the Earth and the life She has provided. I know I'm not alone and that many other Pagans are gathering this weekend or, like me, celebrating at home, and in this knowledge I hold the isolation of the forest at bay.

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona

It's a good day to garden.

Today was a gorgeous spring day - a great day to get the tomatoes located to their new shelf-space beside the pump house. Each is surrounded with a "wall of water" - like a little greenhouse around each plant. All three were planted March 28 and have doubled in size as of today - Apr. 24.



Henry Field's catalog says, "Jet Star's tasty, mild-flavored fruit matures early with tremendous yields. Large, attractive globes have few scars or cracks. Indeterminate vines produce heavily." Along with Jet Star, I've planted a Roma and an heirloom Yellow Pear. Hoping for enough to enjoy and some to share!

Blessed Be,
Julie Epona