End of May Update

May 31, 2011 by birdsong

The month of May is on its last legs, and I am guessing it is going into the annals as one of the wettest on record here in the Sierras.  DH is a USFS High Country Ranger, and informed me that some of my favorite gathering places probably won’t be snow-free until late June or early July!  I am happy to say that I will be able to gather adequate amounts of lodgepole pine bark and sage all the same, as well as other mountain and foothill plants. A few fiber fanatic friends have offered to help me gather barks, plants to dry, berries, and other goodies as the weather relents and stays dry. I also know of some good quaking aspen groves, though those leaves are best when used fresh.

The Memorial Day weekend found me hunkering down inside while it rained (and snowed higher up!), though I did get some plants into the ground. So far, there are hollyhocks, bronze fennel, dahlias, zinnias, ladies’ bedstraw, yarrow, tansy and toyon planted. My dear friend Paul, the force behind the Sierra Permaculture Guild, has offered me some osage orange plants, which will form a nice, rough hedge down where our property meets the road.

They will serve a dual purpose, providing a visual barrier for the outdoor kitchen, which lost much of the cedar branches that had shaded it, over the course of a winter of heavier-than-usual snows. I am picking the plants up tomorrow… this year’s batch of dried osage orange chips will be coming from Possom Tree Farm, also here in Camptonville.

I have seen some much more elaborate dye kitchens, but am still grateful to have a nice, shady place to work! After all, some colors must be created with fresh plants, and so I also spent this weekend doing further research into how to economically acquire local yarns. I will be using some of the Perendale yarns from Currow Hill Ranch, to the northeast of me for an early season dye project, and will keep you updated on that. Mary has also offered me the wool from her small flock in Newcastle, which I will be taking over to Yolo Wool Mill in June for processing. They are the closest mill to me that processes wool into yarn, though I did discover that there are two mills now processing ‘fine’ fleeces, meaning the alpaca, llama, camel and yak, in my region. The first is A Spinning Peddler’s Fiber Mill, located in Foresthill, and the second, Heart and Soul Alpacas and Spinnery, is even closer to me, in Penn Valley.  Guess I need to be looking into dyeing some alpaca fiber as well!

In other news, I will be participating in the second annual Living Skills Day at Willow Springs in North San Juan on July 2nd, demonstrating spinning and setting up a few dye jars using found rusty iron objects, so that people can try their hand. I will also be presenting the topic of the month, Rebuilding the Local Fibershed, at the July Sierra Permaculture Guild meeting on July 9th, at 2:30 PM, also at Willow Springs.

Willow Springs has become a sweet, busy community hub in our region, where I attended a great fundraiser last Saturday, the Souper-Saturday which offered soup in a handmade bowl (thanks to Penelope St. Claire and crew) that you got to take home, as well as music, raffle, and silent auction, all of which raised $3,000 for domestic violence prevention programs at the local family resource center. I only wish it had been warmer! The center also houses the Yo’Garage, offering classes throughout the week, and a home for Sierra Seeds, our local seed-saving cooperative.

I am almost ready to put their Orange Cosmos seeds into the ground!  I was happy to observe a significant warming in my soil today, in spite of continued cloud cover… finally, spring will arrive just in time for summer!