The simplicity of Nature

“Nature is pleased with simplicity. And nature is no dummy.” 

― Isaac Newton 

The Magalies River. Pic taken at Magaliespark, North-West Province, South Africa.

Nature has a great simplicity and, therefore, a great beauty. 

Many people find their greatest peace and serenity in nature. The natural world is exactly what it needs to be, no more and no less. There is no excess or clutter or a lack of organization in nature. Every rock, tree, drop of water, leaf, piece of sand and animal plays its part in nature with no thought as to whether they will match the local terrain or whether they will need extra storage to have all the things they want to have. 

A walk in the woods in the fall, or in the mountains by a bubbling stream, or by the roaring ocean can bring a new perspective into your own life and how it is affected by its surroundings. Our own living spaces should give us the same feeling that we get from being in the outdoors. Peace, quiet, and the time to reflect on our place in this world.

The benefits of nature is to experience the magnificent expressions of nature, who is our greatest teacher. She teaches us to experience and embrace the present moment, expand our deep appreciation and gratitude for all of life and deepen our love for self and other. Nature provides a feeling of full connectedness and aliveness with all, for all and stillness and a peaceful state of being. 

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Marog (Amaranth)

Here in South Africa we have a weed-type of plant growing wild all over the country-side which has been harvested for centuries by the indigenous people and referred to as "Morogo" (Tswana for vegetables). The finished preparation is almost like eating spinach, but has a less smooth and less bitter taste and is absolutely gorgeous prepared with potatoes and onions. As kids, my mom used to send us out into the veld to go and pick Marog and I used to take a huge basket to fill. And then I couldn't wait for supper-time!

Marog leaves must be cooked on the same day as it is picked and is super-easy to prepare:

- Cook the leaves in boiling water
- Add tomatoes and onions or potatoes and onions
- Flavour the dish with salt and pepper.

Image from 'EarthWeeds'

Amaranth bears edible, protein rich seeds and flour ground from these seeds mixes well with cereal flours and increses the protein content.

These days it seems harder and harder to find Marog in the veld, probably due to much of the land around here being developed for other crops, but luckily one can buy seed packs, so that's next on my list for my vegetable garden! I've read that planting can commence as soon as the minimum temperature stays above 16°C and can continue during the summer months up to 2 months prior to the onset of frost.

Seeds are sown shallowly in rows. These rows should be 1,5 m apart. Cover lightly using a rake. The seeds must be watered twice daily until the seedlings emerge. Seeds can also be planted in seed trays. Transplant them after approximately 4 weeks when the plants should be about 15 cm tall. Transplant into rows 1,5 m apart and with a spacing of 30 cm in the row.

Weeding is essential until the plants are well established. Insects cannot be controlled chemically because the crop is harvested regularly and it could result in people getting poisoned. So I will also be planting Marigolds between my Marog as they control a wide spectrum of insects.

Once you have it in your garden all you need to do is allow it to set seed and you will always have a fresh supply starting in early spring.

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Food from trees - The Waterberry

 (Syzigium cordatum - a.k.a Umdoni)

Our indigenous trees in South Africa are a good source of food; they’re both beautiful, and bountiful.

Wild fruits have an exceptionally high vitamin C content – partly what makes them so acid – and sometimes a high protein, fat, carbohydrate or mineral content.

Global warming and climate change are topics that are repeatedly discussed in the media and amongst concerned citizens of Planet Earth. And so they should be. Yet too few people seem sufficiently motivated to make a lasting and positive impact on these disturbing trends by changing their lifestyles even a smidgen. It doesn’t have to be a drastic, life-altering change. It can be as simple and rewarding, as planting a tree, or two, or three?

Trees benefit the ecosystems of the world by providing habitats for many creatures that play significant roles in maintaining the balance of nature. They fertilise and look after the soils, absorb massive quantities of carbon dioxide, release life-giving oxygen, and absorb the rainfall and slowly release it back into the atmosphere or into ground water supplies.

They provide the magic, medicine and poison that minister to the mind and spirit of man; fuel, timber, shade and shelter and, not least of all, food provide for the physical body which is, perhaps, more important in the minds of many people.

Our indigenous trees are a source of all these things, but let’s take a look at trees as a potential source of nourishment. Over hundreds of years the wild trees in this country have provided sustenance – the difference between hunger and plenty, life and death, for people and their livestock, and for the wild animals which they hunted and on which they fed. Today, with our so-called sophisticated tastes, many of these tree foods are unappealing to the palate.

The Waterberry is also known as Waterbessie (Afrikaans), umdoni (Xhosa, Zulu), montlho (Northern Sotho) and (more technically) Syzigium cordatum. The fruits grow in profusion on these rather splendid trees.

The fruits are surprisingly sweet when ripe ones and sour and tangy before reaching their prime.

Syzigium cordatum – the Waterberry tree – belongs to the family Myrtaceae along with the various guavas, pomegranates and Australian gums. Most people are also familiar with the common Eugenia used as a hedging plant. We’ve all used allspice and cloves in the kitchen. These are the aromatic fruits and flower buds respectively of other members of this same family, and which have great commercial value in Asia.

The Waterberry is an evergreen, water-loving tree occurring fairly widely in South Africa and in a wide range of habitats ranging from forest margins, along water courses, in open bush and rocky outcrops, and from sea level to altitudes of 1 600 metres. It reaches heights of 12 to 18 metres, the larger specimens being found in swamp forests where they have been described as being ‘literally supported on top of quagmires by the tremendous spread of their roots’.

A large 200-year old Waterberry tree at the Waterberry Coffee Shop in Ballito, South Africa. Unfortunately this tree fell over a couple of years ago, crushing half the coffee shop in the process. The theory was that the water-logged ground it was growing in couldn't support its weight any longer. I took this picture a few years ago.

Waterberries are dense with round or spreading canopies and are often more luxuriant at the coast where the air is more humid, and water tables may be higher.

In fact, it is believed that the presence of these trees in the wild indicates the presence of ground water. The blue-green leaves are thick and leathery, well able to tolerate the gale-force winds in the South-Western Cape and new foliage is bright red which adds to the aesthetic appeal of the tree. In the wild, browsing animals such as the Kudu eat the leaves and there are certainly birds such as the Crowned Hornbill which indirectly benefit by feeding off the hairy caterpillars of moths and butterflies that sometimes infest it occasionally.

In early spring and summer the clusters of sturdy buds at the ends of the branches burst into creamy-white or pink flowers which drop their petals very quickly leaving little puffs of stamens. The flowers have a delicate scent, produce large amounts of nectar and provide a good food source for bees and other insects. In late summer and autumn, the fleshy, deep pink to purple berries ripen, each one with one pip and these provide food for humans and a variety of animals including monkeys, birds, tortoises and mice.

This tree is perhaps one of the most useful in our arboreal anthology:

- It provides nesting sites and habitats for a variety of wild life.

- Its bark provides a reddish-brown or orange dye, is used as an emetic and to treat stomach complaints and diarrhoea.

- Powdered bark is also used as a fish poison. The leaves and roots are used for treating respiratory ailments and tuberculosis.

- The timber is heavy and hard, strong and elastic with a beautiful grain and, after seasoning in water, has been used for beams and rafters, furniture, boat building and fuel.

It is purportedly strongly fire-resistant: perhaps we should be planting more of it as fire-breaks in vulnerable areas.

(All photographs taken in my garden)

Source Biophile Magazine Issue 16

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September inspiration

Never yet was there a springtime, when the buds forgot to bloom. 

— Margaret Elizabeth Sangster

The 1st of September is officially Spring in South Africa and although all the signs of spring are there  — peach trees full of blossoms, Tiger grass and other plants pushing out new green shoots — today is  one of the coldest days of the past winter with temperatures at -2℃ early this morning and not going much above 10℃. Hopefully this will be the last of the cold and it's forth into summer from here on!

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Wishing you a beautiful Spring season!

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Green living

You might think that I — a lifelong nature lover — would automatically have been an environmentalist. But it wasn't until late in my 30's, when I seriously started gardening and saw what chemical insecticides, pesticides, herbicides and poisons (like rat poison) were doing to the insects and wildlife, that I became one through and through.

How we choose to manage pests in our yards is important for our families, our community and our environment. Some pesticides can cause accidental injury or death to non-target species such as aquatic organisms, birds, mammals and beneficial insects such as bees and butterflies. Micro-organisms in your lawn and garden can also be harmed, reducing their ability to enrich the soil and provide nutrients for plants.

This led me to even worry about all the toxic and dangerous chemicals I'd also been using in my home without ever thinking twice. I started seeing the build-up of fabric softeners in our septic tanks, causing thick cakes of oily, creamy fabric softener to block up the whole tank, preventing water from seeping away and spilling over. The constant use of bleach was killing all the necessary bacteria needed to keep septic tanks clean and chemical drain cleaners to eliminate smell also killed any useful bacteria that was not already dead.

I turned to replacing all those chemicals with more natural products, some of which I though up myself using common sense, some of which was passed on by friends.

Vinegar, baking soda and hot water is just about all one needs. Baking soda cleans, deodorizes, softens water and scours (goodbye to Vim!). I use vinegar to disinfect my animal water bowls and it also removes the scale build-up on bowls.

To clean my drains, I mix 1/2 cup salt in 4 liters water of hot water and pour down the drain. For stronger cleaning, I pour about 1/2 cup baking soda down the drain, then 1/2 cup vinegar. The resulting chemical reaction can break fatty acids down into soap and glycerine, allowing the clog to wash down the drain. After 15 minutes, pour in boiling water to clear residue.

Instead of spraying my chicken coops with dangerous insecticides, I spray with vinegar and sprinkle diatomaceous earth all over the coop, even on my chickens, for fleas, lice, mosquitoes and other harmful insects. I also make a potpourri out of various herbs which helps keeping the goggos at bay as well as impart a lovely smell to the coop when it gets trampled by the chickens.

Another natural control is a soap solution which can be used to wash leaves and eliminate pests and diseases. A natural fungicide can be made from one tablespoon each of baking soda and horticultural oil diluted in four liters of water and sprayed on leaves

For many home-cleaning chores, you can make your own cleaning products out of inexpensive, easy-to-use natural alternatives :

- Baking Soda - cleans, deodorizes, softens water, scours
- Soap - unscented soap in liquid form, flakes, powders or bars is biodegradable and will clean just about anything. Avoid using soaps which contain petroleum distillates
- Lemon - one of the strongest food-acids, effective against most household bacteria
- Borax - (sodium borate) cleans, deodorizes, disinfects, softens water, cleans wallpaper, painted walls and floors
- White Vinegar - cuts grease, removes mildew, odors, some stains and wax build-up
- Washing Soda - or SAL Soda is sodium carbonate decahydrate, a mineral. Washing soda cuts grease, removes stains, softens water, cleans wall, tiles, sinks and tubs. Use with care, as washing soda can irritate mucous membranes. Do not use on aluminum.
- Cornstarch - can be used to clean windows, polish furniture, shampoo carpets and rugs
- Citrus Solvent - cleans paint brushes, oil and grease, some stains. (Citrus solvent may cause skin, lung or eye irritations for people with multiple chemical sensitivities.)

All-Purpose Cleaner:
Mix 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda (or 2 teaspoons borax) into 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water. Store and keep. Use for removal of water deposit stains on shower stall panels, bathroom chrome fixtures, windows, bathroom mirrors, etc

Air Freshener
Commercial air fresheners mask smells and coat nasal passages to diminish the sense of smell. Here are some natural air freshener alternatives :

• Baking soda or vinegar with lemon juice in small dishes absorbs odors around the house
• Having houseplants helps reduce odors in the home
• Prevent cooking odors by simmering vinegar (1 tbsp in 1 cup water) on the stove while cooking. To get such smells as fish and onion off utensils and cutting boards, wipe them with vinegar and wash in soapy water
• Keep fresh coffee grounds on the counter.
• Grind up a slice of lemon in the garbage disposal
• Simmer water and cinnamon or other spices on stove
• Place bowls of fragrant dried herbs and flowers in room.

A natural laundry detergent can be made by mixing 1 cup liquid soap, 1/2 cup washing soda and 1/2 cup borax. Use 1 tbsp for light loads; 2 tbsp for heavy loads. As far as fabric softener is concerned, I don't use it at all - to reduce static cling, dampen your hands, then shake out your clothes as you remove them from the drier. Line-drying clothing is another alternative, saving on electricity as well.

Image from Apartment Therapy

The common Mothball is made of paradichlorobenzene, which is harmful to liver and kidneys. Homemade moth-repelling sachets can be made with lavender, rosemary, vetiver and rose petals. Dried lemon peels are also a natural moth deterrent - simply toss into clothes chest, or tie in cheesecloth and hang in the closet. Cedar oil on an absorbent cloth will also repel moths. I use the aromatic cedar obtainable from many essential oil suppliers.

Image credit 

I've even come upon a shampoo alternative - Sonnet of "In Sonnet's Kitchen" says, " When I found out what was really in shampoo a year and a half ago, I vowed to stop using it and so I switched to the baking soda and vinegar method. Shampoos can contain a lot of harmful ingredients like

• Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate (used as a foaming agent in shampoo and is a possible carcinogen)
 • DEA/Diethanolamine (an emulsifying agent that can create carginogenic compounds when combined with other chemicals found in personal care products)
• Parabens (used as preservatives to extend shelf life, but many of these chemicals have been linked to breast cancer)
• Fragrance (the word “fragrance” on a label can mean the presence of over 4,000 separate chemical ingredients; scary!)

Read more at In Sonnet's Kitchen

Finding green products to clean your home and manage your garden is easier than you think. Most products like vinegar, lemon and many more are right under our noses in our closets. So turn to green cleaning and use cleaning solutions and methods that keep our environment healthy.

Green living is a lifestyle choice. Green living is simple -- just a few small changes can make our lifestyle more eco-friendly and reduce our carbon footprint...

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Toilet rolls and a bird-friendly garden

We all love to hear the sound of birds in the garden and the sight of butterflies, but few of us design a garden that attracts them. The good news is that you don't have to dig out all your roses or other exotic plants in favour of indigenous plants. Just ensure that at least a portion of the garden contains plants and other facilities to encourage urban "wildlife" into the garden.

An excellent way to attract birds to your garden is to offer them food, places to nest, lots of water and a bird bath or two so they can have their daily bath.

Different birds have different food choices. If you offer something for seed eaters, nectar feeders and fruit eaters you're well on your way to providing birds with a welcome habitat as well as hours of enjoyment for yourself.

I'm always thinking of new ways to attract birds and the other day, while I was throwing away yet ANOTHER toilet roll core, I decided that there must be some use for it (I already use them in various ways around the house - to store used wrapping paper, as a hold-all for my art equipment and storing computer cables, an idea I found on the internet). I already had a jug of seeds for the bird tables in my hand, so off to the kitchen I went, smeared some honey all over the core and rolled it in some seeds and voila! a lovely snack ready to be pushed over a twig on a tree for the birds to enjoy!

 Toilet roll cores snipped on one edge, folded open and stuck onto a board - perfect for all my art brushes and pens and pencils

Another useful idea for all those toilet roll cores!

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Black Eagle up-date Aug 2013

Faithful Black Eagles continue to breed

Photo by Garth Heydenrych 

At the Walter Sisulu botanical gardens in Roodepoort (Gauteng, South Africa) the female Black Eagle (Verreaux's eagle - Aquila verreauxii), called Emoyeni, laid two eggs on 15 and 19 April 2013. The eagle pair were sighted collecting twigs and leaves to prepare their nest for the expected brood. Emoyeni has bred annually over the past 30 years with the exception of a few odd years. Only the past 30 years are counted since the establishment of the Garden, but some sources claim that these eagles have been residing in this area for more than 40 years.

Usually around February, the eagle pair mate and groom each other whilst tending and preparing their nest. After a 45 to 60 day incubation period two chicks hatch, but only one is likely to make it to adulthood. The other may not even hatch, but if it does, the older chick that hatched first, will poke its younger sibling to death. This is known as the Cain and Abel struggle and it all happens in the presence of the parents who seem to tolerate this behaviour.

(Photo Lian van den Heever) 

In July 2013 however, there was no sign of the old eggs on the nest, and some mating behaviour was observed.

Picture G. Heydenrych 

Then, on the 17th August 2013, an egg was spotted in the nest with the second one following on the 19th August. Hopefully now, after a 45 to 60 day incubation period, two chicks will hatch, ensuring another future generation of Black Eagles.

19th August 2013 - two eggs in the nest 

Although this is good news, the hot summer weather can pose a challenge because breeding usually takes place in winter with the eggs hatching in mid-May. The latest batch of eggs, after a 45-day incubation period, will only hatch at the beginning of October, which is mid-summer here in South Africa. But these birds are very adaptable and all this will not hinder them from producing another generation in summer.

The Black Eagles can be viewed from a live feed web link from the wildlife multilink platform of Black Eagle Webcam that documents a multitude of animals through live video.

(Info from Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens Newsletter)

 

Screenshot from Wikipedia

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A wild start to my day!

This morning I went out early to let my girls out and, as usual, Chi-Chi was the first out, followed by the others, with Missy last, always in that order.

Chi-Chi

Missy 

The previous night when I put them away, I had left a squeaky toy of Jacko's behind, it fell out my pocket onto the lawn, and this caused a HUGE ruckus!

They took turns in circling it while cackling loudly and those in the side-lines had their necks stretched out to the maximum, trying to stare it down! Those chickens carried on like they had a 3-meter Cobra in the backyard. They cackled and squawked and ran in and out of the hen house, wanting a better look at the 'thing'. None of them touched it.

The on-lookers running around in circles 

They only settled down once I picked the bright orange and blue toy up and removed it. They know every inch of their territory and just one thing out of place sends them into a flap - literally. Chi-Chi even double-checked after I removed it to see if it was really gone!

Chi-Chi making sure the 'thing' hadn't jumped into the pot to hide 

I go out into the garden earlier now the weather is warming up. Not that I can feel it that much yet, but the peach tree's blossoms is a sure indication that it has warmed up!

Just after sunrise, when the birds are calling out for the first time that day, I wander around, looking and thinking, filling the bird feeders, noticing what needs to be done in the garden and making a mental note. I understand now why gardening is such a popular pastime for retired folk. Not only is there a lot of gentle and robust work to be done, there is life and the potential for growth and change and as you grow older, it's wonderful being a part of that.

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Striped Grass Mouse

Rhabdomys pumilio : Common name - Four-striped grass mouse. Streepmuis in Afrikaans

A Striped Field mouse in my garden. He's quite tame as I often put out seeds for them, and here I was within a meter from him. He was actually very disgusted, drying himself off as I had accidentally gotten him wet while watering the garden with the hosepipe.

 

I tolerate these lovely little creatures (unlike rats!) as they are totally harmless and very rarely venture into the house. I've only ever seen this pair in my garden and was actually hoping to see little ones scurrying about!

Rhabdomys is a largely Southern African genus of muroid rodents slightly larger than house mice. 

 

Here they are snacking on some sunflower seeds I put out for them in my garden. 

The Striped Mouse, so named because of the four longitudinal black stripes down its back, is an opportunistic omnivore, and has a varied diet. In certain areas they are mainly granivorous, while in others they may eat more plant material than seeds. They also enjoy a wide variety of other vegetable matter and insects.

The striped mouse helps to pollinate many Protea species, as pollen clings to its head while it is feeding. When the mouse moves off to feed on other neighboring flowers of the same species, it carries the pollen with it, thus assisting in the fertilization of these flowers. They normally excavate a burrow at the base of a grass thicket, ensuring that the entrance is well hidden, and lining the chambers of their burrows with soft, leafy debris; alternatively, they construct a ground-level nest under cover of dense stands of tall grass.

 

Striped Mouse forage by day, particularly in the early morning and late afternoon, and are often seen among the tall grasses growing on the perimeter of cultivated land. In central Africa, where striped mice are also found, they breed throughout the year, but in the south the breeding season is usually confined to the summer months (September to May).

During the breeding season the adult females appear to be territorial, with limited home ranges which probably overlap the large home ranges of the males. There are from 2 - 9 young per litter.
Some Info from "EcoTravel"

Location : My garden in Tarlton, Gauteng, South Africa Camera : Fuji FinePix 2800Zoom 

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Roosters really do know what time it is

My rooster Artemis announcing the start of day 

Normally, at 4am like clock-work, I'm awakened by Artemis announcing the start of another day. In summer it can be as early as 3am! This sets off ALL Solly's roosters and I can assure you, NOTHING can sleep through that racket! Their crowing has now set MY internal clock and I'm normally awake just before the crowing starts.

The rooster's morning cock-a-doodle-doo is driven by an internal clock, finds new research, suggesting that male chickens really know the time of day.

The study, detailed in the journal Current Biology, found that roosters put under constant light conditions will still crow at the crack of dawn.

Past studies have found that a myriad of animal behaviors are driven by an internal clock: at night, a dip in insulin causes humans to process food more slowly, and even blind cave fish use a circadian clock to tell time.

"Cock-a-doodle-doo' symbolizes the break of dawn in many countries," said study author Takashi Yoshimura of Nagoya University, in a statement. "But it wasn't clear whether crowing is under the control of a biological clock or is simply a response to external stimuli."

Because stimuli throughout the day — such as car headlights — will set off a rooster's crow at any time, it was also possible that increasing light was the trigger for the cock's crows.

To find out Yoshimura and his colleagues put 40 roosters in a setting with constant light, then recorded when they crowed.

Sure enough, the chickens crowed at daybreak regardless of the light conditions. The roosters also crowed at other times of day and in response to light and the crows of their fellow chickens, but those behaviours were much stronger at daybreak. The findings suggest that an internal circadian clock, rather than external conditions, drive the behavior.

Read more at Mother Nature Network

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