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A topiary dreamscape. "Passage, Leavens Hall." Archival pigmet print by Beth Dow.
On a walk through Versailles, its maniacal grandeur is impossible to ignore. In the film The Shining, it is an endless maze with horror at every turn. It is a dark art that literally comes alive for Edward Scissorhands. This shear madness is topiary.
The Old Farmer’s Almanac, that periodical which has managed to endure over two centuries of political upheaval, several wars, and dramatic cultural and technological evolutions, was all done, for the most part, by remaining relatively unchanged at the steady center of America’s storm.
Robert B. Thomas Farmer's Almanac, 1907
Tending a backyard vegetable patch or growing herbs on your windowsill are by no means new ideas, but it’s impossible to ignore the recent explosion in popularity of urban gardening. Transcending mere trend, gardening is once again in the mainstream of modern living, even – or perhaps especially – for city dwellers. As during World War II, when Victory Gardeners were digging their way to produce during wartime, home gardening has once again taken on a feeling of urgency, as well as providing a frugal avenue toward self-sufficiency.
All Americans Urged to Grow Victory Gardens
You might have heard the nightmarish predictions and the difficult to deny facts – a dizzying 50 billion… yes, billion honeybees dead over the last three years… and counting. If you’re not an insect lover, this might not seem troublesome until you think a bit about the bees’ intrinsic link to human survival – without their help of pollination, one third of our food supply would essentially be destroyed.
Blue Banded Bee on a Pin, Courtesy of Padil
‘The good life is never stable, never secure, never easy and never ended. It is a series of steps or stages, one leading into the other and all, in their outcome, adding, not subtracting; augmenting, not diminishing; building, not destroying; creating, not annihilating.’ – Scott Nearing, 1965
Helen & Scott Nearing
Indigo-dyed cotton made in West Virginia from 1835 to 1956
Espionage and the Secrets of Craft on the Island of Murano
Five Recipes and All-Around Tricks for Winter Coziness
Seed Saving
Nature's life cycle is cinematic. Little Edie of Grey Gardens standing in front of her overgrown garden. Image via Swell Dame's Parlour.
It’s Fall and our gardens are dying. You probably spent some time deadheading basil and mint flowers and getting upset when lettuce bolted. By the time herbs and plants start developing seeds and flowers, they’ve slowed down on producing the leaves we love to eat. They have one foot in the grave. Keep the life cycle cyclical and save their seeds for next year.
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