06/12/2026
We’re still here 😂…. Man this is gonna be a long rambling mess of a post cuz who knows when I’ll get back to update ya again???? So here goes…
It’s been a fun few weeks here on our little homestead. Days typically start much of the same way, wake up, drink coffee, maybe a phone call with my mama, then it’s time to “go forth and forage” (this is one of my fav content creators mottos). After that I am slipping on a pair of muck boots and heading out into the yard/woods to see what God’s beautiful creation has in store for me!
It takes me a fair amount of time to become confident that the plants being harvested are properly identified, then searching out their value and uses so that I do not harm the plant, waste it, or get sick from it 😬. A lot of time is spent reading up on these plants, learning the folk and herbal preparation methods etc. I find that when I head out to harvest, while there are at times very specific plant targets for an outing, that I am frequently finding plenty of other things along the way. Rarely do I come home with only one type of something in my bag. I see something and it’s like it says, “oooo, Pick me! Pick me!” And then I’ll identify it, read a bit on it and be like 😮, I need this plant in my life 😂.
The foraging finds I got most excited about the past few weeks are the Sambucus Trees and yarrow plants I realized we’ve got here. I’ve been gathering some elderflower and am very much looking forward to the berries in the fall. I have some seeds in cold stratification process currently to plant Sambucus (produces elderflower & elderberry) but to already have these wild native beautiful and extremely beneficial plants growing right in our backyard… this girl is feeling super blessed! It would take years before I would have a productive elderberry crop planting from seed, so finding multiple mature trees just makes my heart happy!!!
After foraging and/or clipping herbs from the garden, we prep those finds for their intended purposes, whether simply drying them and properly storing for future herbal/medicinal use, or beginning an extraction process to pull the plants healing properties out or just mixing up a cup or two of herbal tea infusions for immediate enjoyment. There’s something so incredibly fascinating, ridiculously cool, and satisfying about taking a walk in nature and responsibly gathering leaves, flowers, and roots, to support our health and wellness.
Rose petal tea, plantain salve, sinus support tea, lymphatic support tincture, lemon balm lemonade, and a breathe easy tea blend are a few examples of some things we’ve enjoyed or found useful over the past month or so.
There are lots of joys in this, but as anyone who has lived life very long at all learns, there are pains as well… we had to move all our plants out of the greenhouse and into the backyard so we could relocate the structure due to a drainage problem where it was sitting. It now stands empty in its new spot, but hopefully not empty for too long. The plants are loving their new backyard environment and doing wonderfully!!! We just need MORE plants 😂. Our little beginner orchard took a big hit when we forgot to close up the temporary fencing around it. The deer came in and ate our entire crop of honeycrisp apples coming in as well as most of the leaves on all the trees. It was a sad morning when I realized what had happened, but hey, ya live and learn right?
The chickens are growing and beautiful, can’t wait for laying season to be upon them, hopeful by the late fall free range eggs will once again be in good supply. Our sweet little kitty Meika is expecting any day now, so soon little kittens will be bouncing around once again on the homestead. Our friend Riggly the Golden Retriever wandered back over to visit for a few days and we were introduced to his owner so now we know where he goes back to if he turns up again. We like his visits, he has made himself right at home the past two times he’s popped in.
Baked the biggest cake I’ve baked to date for a special birthday in the family, also some yummy cupcakes for a little sweetie who turned 3, still working to perfect a sugar cookie that I’m proud of, and took a shot at making some brownie stuffed banana bread too! The farmstand still sits quietly waiting for me to pack it full of goodies when the time is right. It got blown down in some stormy weather recently but remained intact, so feeling pretty good about my weak construction skills 😬. We were blessed with a new sign for the stand on Mother’s Day, I’ve been patiently waiting to add it until we’re open again.
And folks… the black raspberries are HERE! Sooo the next couple weeks we will be out foraging those beauties and hopefully turning them into some seedless preserves and one of my absolute favorites, black raspberry cobbler 😍. Blackberries will be soon behind these sooo berry picking season is on!
If you hung in here til the end, wow… thank you. I know someday we are going to be able to share things with you all and are so looking forward to that. Right now, we’re learning, growing, and working toward it.
Much Love ❤️
Root & Hearth
