Queer Lichen & Spruce Tips
One week into March, and boy has it packed a punch.
As this is sent out I am packing, or more reasonably I should have packed by now (though this is unlikely). Surrounded by the boxes of my life in London, the things I am leaving behind mix in my memories with the people that make this place. Behind the brick walls, grizzled bark, smog-filled crevasses, lurk my family and friends.
Recently I have been reading Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life, which talks about fungi and their myriad of abilities. One of the chapters that struck me was that of lichens. Originally thought to be the symbiosis of algae and fungi alone these ancient organisms are actually whole communities. They can contain anything from several bacteria types, yeasts and other fungi. Each contributing to the unit in a way that would not be accessible if they were separate. When this was described I immediately thought of the Queer Theory, the non-nuclear family unit and of our own human bodies. Since finding out we are equal parts bacteria and human cells, it’s been quite hard to wrestle myself from the idea that we are anything other than ecosystems. We quite literally contain multitudes.
As with more traditional ecosystems, there needs to be balance, what would be a helpful bacteria in the gut can wreak havoc in the blood. Within our bodies or those of lichen, there are niches for each of the beings present. This same principle can be applied to the wider world, there is a space and a place for all things. But outside of that space, there is room for infection, colonisation and infestation. To achieve balance we must keep some parts of the ecosystem in check. This has been the role of humans for millennia, adjacent evolution with plants and animals leading us to be guardians but not rulers. Turning this inwards the same is said for our bodies, we are their protectors but hell, they’ll still do what they want sometimes.
My point is, that self-care, the creation of space for rest, joy, creativity and nourishment, is the foundation for community care. It is not it’s a replacement, but it fortifies us towards that goal. As we near the “end” of Lockdown in the UK, and I depart halfway around the world to grow seeds, now is the time to remember to treat our bodies like the beautiful biomes they are, and vice versa.
The Tarot card this week is the Ace of Wand Reversed. This sprouting branch seems to appear from nowhere, although it is reversed, signifying the planting of ideas but also a lack of direction. Ask yourself: What ideas can't you shake? How can you give them form? What is a distraction and what is a delay? Where do you turn when the road ahead gets foggy?
One way in which we can take inspiration, direction or just insight is from the small shoots and tips of spruces this week. The bright almost lime green hints of spring can be found in between the trees. The spruce tips, an ink-blot of new life amongst the darker greener old-growth bring with them a freshness. A renewed energy. They build on what has come before and venture forth, sunshine bright and hopeful. As always I would suggest you leave far more than you take. Try to take from as many trees as you can, maybe one or two tips max. These, you must remember are the new branches, new leaves, new hope of the tree. Don’t destroy its’ spring growth for nothing. If you are foraging within a city remember that there are so many more people than plants. We can’t take like we would in the wild. City foraging should never come at a cost of the rest of the local wildlife. We share our city, so share these spruce tips. They are best picked before it rains and make sure you don’t confuse them for yew tips.
How to use them, you are most probably asking. One way is to make a syrup, which could not be simpler (not to be confused with simple syrup); place the spruce tips in sugar in a jar 1:2 tips to sugar. It seems to work best when you layer the sugar and spruce tips like a sweet green lasagne, not only does it look stripey and cute but it helps the sugar permeate (always end with a layer of sugar). Leave this creation in the sun for up to a month as the sugar melts and infuses with Vitamin C goodness. Used traditionally as a cough remedy this syrup tastes like spring.
Speaking of eating seasonally, potatoes, Jerusalem artichoke and hardy cabbage types are still in season. I have a sudden growth in one of my scrap pots (where I put seeds and foods I can’t eat so they don’t go to waste) and I have realised it is the rapid growth of a Jerusalem artichoke. These bad boys can grow up to ten feet tall, so it needs to be planted out soon. If you would prefer to eat them, which I would recommend, they go well in this surprising salad or as the base of a breakfast hash. For cabbage things, I would go with Golumpki (cabbage rolls), Okonomiyaki or a good old fresh noodle dish. When speaking of fruit, the season hasn’t changed so much. We are still sticking with the classics of this time, Blood Orange, Kiwi, Rhubarb, Pomegranate and Passionfruit. But since talking with a friend of mine I thought I would elaborate on the process of passion fruit seed saving (and sprouting).
Passion fruit, which are now in season, can be dried or directly fermented to get to the seeds within their really tasty pulp. Either way, it’s super easy to save and sprout a fruit you haven’t eaten. When planting out wait until the seedlings are 10cm tall then move them to their own pots. Passion Fruit grows on a vine, so the best way to fit it into a garden space is to plant it at the base of a tree, replicating the support it would have in its original environment. The best way to maximise space and growth within a garden is to layer your plants. The trunk of a tree is free real estate to vines, so let them have at it. If you end up planting some passionfruit, send me any and all pictures…
This week’s podcast is from Resist + Renew, interviewing D and Dot from The Classwork Project.
As always I would love it if you could leave a comment, like or even share this post if you have learned something (or shout at me in the comments if you haven’t).
Stay Scrappy,
Magda
Image credits: Markus Spiske, Jeffrey Hamilton, Yoksel Zok, Eva Elijas
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Learning with Magda 💙
Really good read ❤️