History of New Year's and It's Connection to Nature

In ancient history, the date of the first of the New Year has changed from culture to culture as they each developed their own calendars of the year. Many had to do with astrological events or change in season, which affected their livelihood; the crops. When humans had a solid connection to the Earth they celebrated the bounty which it provided.

Akitu and New Year's Eve

For some the New Year was celebrated in the springtime. The earliest celebration dates back to 4000 years ago in Babylon with a festival called Akitu, the Sumerian word for Barley, which was cut in the spring. It fell in March during the first full moon after the vernal equinox, which marks the first day of spring.

Around 3000 years ago, the Chinese New Year originated to celebrate the start of the spring planting season. Later it became entwined with folklore and myths. Today, the “Chinese New Year is still based on a lunar calendar that dates back to the second millennium BC, the holiday typically falls in late January or early February on the second new moon after the winter solstice”.

In Scotland, local traditions based around fire date back to pagan winter celebrations. Fire represents the return of the sun to the land.

In the US, we use the gregorian calendar and celebrate the first of January as the start of the New Year. The Gregorian calendar is a later version of the Roman calendar, with just 10 months, which used to follow lunar cycles. They celebrated the New Year during the vernal equinox in March. This 10 month calendar fell out of sync with the sun and two more months were added. January 1 became the start of the year.

The tradition of setting New Year's resolutions dates back to ancient times as well. Babylonians made promises to their gods to repay debts. Today, we reflect on the past year and think of how to better ourselves in the future. Hopefully, many resolve to, in some way, reconnect with our planet Earth, to which we owe our lives.

Source History.com

Happy Holidays from Staghorn NYC

It's Wreath Making Time!

Making your own holiday wreath is easy, fun and you get to make it however you want!

First, go gather some plant materials! Be creative. There are a lot of dried plants out there that make great decorations for your wreaths.

Wreath making supplies

Floral wire

Wire frame

Pruners or heavy duty scissors

Evergreen branches

And other fun plant materials you found

Snip pieces from your evergreen branches so you have small bundles. Use the floral wire to attach the bundles around the frame. You repeat this overlapping the previous bundle.

I made many with the wire frame last year so I wanted to try a different wreath. I made this one with vines from the woods. You don't need the frame for this because you can just wrap them in on themselves. 

You can decorate the vine wreaths the same way by attaching bundles and other decorations. 

Ta- Da

Now we are all pros.

Soil and Compost

Colin and our sweet new composter!

Since the Staghorn team has gotten a new composter, I figured now is a good time to do a post about soil and compost. Composting is finally taking off and more and more people are doing it or at least have heard about it. NYC has been expanding their compost program with the brown bins for compost curbside pick up, which is super awesome. But right now it’s only happening in certain areas. There are other options for getting rid of your kitchen scraps. Most of the farmers markets have compost collections. If you are lucky enough to have some space for a bin then it’s good to know a little about composting so you can get it right.

If you have a garden, composting is the best thing you can do. It all starts with the soil. If the soil isn’t right, your garden is not going to do well. Feeding the soil will keep your plants happy and growing strong.

Let’s start with the basics..

What is soil?

Soil is the mixture of eroded rocks and minerals, organic matter, liquids, and myriad organisms that together support plant life.

Sand, silt and clay are the main non-living rock particles that soil is composed of.

Textures of soil are determined by the ratio of sand, silt and clay that they contain.

Different plants thrive in different types of soil. Think sandy beach plants (sandy soil) vs forest understory (high organic matter, more clay in soil). For a nice garden soil you wouldn’t want either extreme, sand or clay, but a good mix. Loam is a good mix of clay, sand and silt, which is best for garden soil.

The composition of the soil is important as well. You don’t want super compacted dry soil.

Ideal Soil Composition for Gardens:

• Air 25%
• Water 25%
• Organic matter 5%:
• Organisms 10%
• Roots 10%
• Humus(fully broken down organic matter) 80%

What is compost?

Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled to be used as a fertilizer and soil amendment. It is an organic way of turning your kitchen and yard waste into rich nutrients for your garden soil.

There are three main elements to creating successful compost. These include:

Air – Turning your compost helps give the microorganisms needed oxygen. This helps the decomposition occur faster and helps prevent unpleasant odors that may occur if the pile begins to compost anaerobically.

Moisture- The pile should be damp but not soggy. If it is too soggy, more browns should be added.

Temperature- Compost should be warm to the touch. The heat in the pile is caused by biological processes. Having the pile warm enough is important for killing pathogenic organisms and possible weed seeds.

Finished compost piles can take a few months to a year to fully break down.

The compost is ready to use when it is dark brown, smells like earth, and crumbles in your hand.

What should and shouldn’t go into your compost:

Good compost is a mix of 3 parts “browns” and 1 part “greens”. Here are some examples of each:

BROWNS, Carbon-rich

+Dry Leaves +Dead Plants

+Shredded Paper +Pine Needles

+Sawdust +Straw

GREENS, Nitrogen-rich

+Grass Clippings +Green Weeds

+Fruit & Veg Scraps +Garden Waste

+Eggshells +Coffee Grounds

DO NOT ADD TO COMPOST:

-Meats and bones -Fish -Dairy

-Nuts -Fats & Oils -Eggs -Pet Waste

If you are composting through the NYC compost program they say you can compost these things I have listed not to. This is because they have a system which is much stronger than any backyard bin you will have. A system must reach extremely high temperature to be able to process these things. Also, you really don’t want rotting meat in your backyard.

How to Propagate Succulents From Cuttings or Leaves

I just spent the last week in sunny Southern California. One of my favorite things about SoCal is that succulents are growing everywhere! I love succulents. If I could I would have a giant wall covered in them... one day! Back on the east coast succulents growing outdoors are far less abundant, though there are varieties that are hardy even over here. To cope with this, it is fun to grow them indoors. I love them so much that most flat surfaces in my room are covered with them(maybe too much?). 

Awesome window box near Santa Monica

Part of the awesomeness of succulents is that they are so easy to grow and propagate. You can take a little piece of one, or even a leaf, and start a whole new plant. Here is a little guide to starting new plants from pieces of others:

Taking a cutting

How to take a cutting depends on the type of succulent. Most can be propagated from just a single leaf and others need to be cut with part of the stem and some can be done either way. Aeoniums are a type that only work with a cutting. Sedums and echeverias can be done by a leaf or cutting.

This is a type of Aeonium

This is a echeveria with little sedums around it

When you are taking a leaf cutting, it is important you get the entire leaf. If part breaks off then it will most likely not work. 

When taking a cutting from a stem with leaves, cut the stem and then remove the lower few rows of leaves. Where the leaves were is where new roots will grow. 

I found a broken piece on the ground! Score!

What to do with your cutting

With a cutting of a stem, you need to leave it be for about a week so that the area that was cut can scab over. 

You can either lay your pieces out on some surface, a bowl, windowsill, dresser, or lay them out on top of some soil. 

Pieces on my dresser

Laid out on top of soil

Either way works fine. As you can see there are some with roots on my dresser and on the soil. Those on the soil are older and some have started to grow new leaves.

Here is a close up of the new leaves

Watering

Mature succulents require very little water but the new cuttings need a bit more. I use a spray bottle to water mine. I do this a few times a week. It's important not to soak them too much as they can rot. 

Some people water the soil and let the roots take what they need but I get scared of overwatering them that way. Also, these plants are very resilient. I've had ones fall behind the table and keep growing without being watered at all. 

Not all of your leaves will grow new plants. Sometimes they grow roots and no new leaves. Sometimes they just shrivel up. And sometimes they work!

New Plants

Once your leaves start growing new leaves, the old starter leaf may shrivel up. You can see that in the close up photo above. You can remove this old leaf if you want. I tend to leave it because they are so fragile and I hate to break the new plant after I've gotten this far. 

You can put this new plant in a little pot or leave them all growing together in the larger one.

Here are a bunch of broken pieces I put in a pot to grow together

Your larger cuttings can be put into a pot when they start growing roots.

This is a large jade cutting that I potted in a glass jar. If you do this, water very sparingly because there are no drainage holes.

Sometimes if one of your plants is getting too tall and leggy, it's nice to cut that long piece off, start and new one. The place where you cut from the original plant with now grow fuller where it was cut.

On the left side of this jade plant was where I cut a piece and now two stems are growing from that spot

Have fun with your cuttings and new plants!

An awesome dinosaur succulent planter my friend's mom made for me!

Putting the Garden to Bed

This fall has been pretty warm. In fact, this October was the warmest on record. So, many of your gardens may still be going strong. Though as I write this it is 62 degrees outside, the temperatures will soon fall. This weekend the lows at night will start to hit the 30s. This signals it is time to start  putting the garden to bed. Thoroughly cleaning up the garden and readying it for winter is important for a healthy spring garden. Here are some things you

Mulch 

If you have planted fall plants or bulbs, you probably have already mulched(or should have). If you haven’t, now is the time. Adding a nice layer of mulch to your garden gives extra protection to your plants. It also adds nutrients to the soil as it breaks down over time. Be sure to choose natural mulch and not that funky dyed mulch that’s full of chemicals that you don’t need to be putting in your garden or the water supply. Check out Better Home and Garden for the best types of mulch.

Blow out irrigation systems

If you have an irrigation system, you probably don’t want it to freeze and crack over the winter. To prevent this, you want to get out all of the water. To do this you can use an air compressor to blow it out. The pressure you use depends on the type of irrigation system you have (a maximum of 80 psi for rigid PVC pipe systems, or 50 psi for flexible black polyethylene pipe). If you have a timer on your hose, disconnect this and bring it inside.

If you don’t have an irrigation system, you still want to keep your hoses from freezing. Make sure to get all the water out before putting them away.

Clear and compost dead plants

The point of clearing away dead plants is to keep the garden clean. Leaving dead plant debris in the garden can cause the spread of disease and give insects a great place to breed. If the plant has died because of what looks like disease, do not compost this. Never put diseased plant material in the compost. But definitely compost all other plant materials. I know you have plenty of leaves by now for it. A nice hot compost pile will kill off the pathogens and convert the garden debris to a usable fertilizer in the future, so don’t throw all that debris away!

Cut back perennials

After a few frosts, cut back perennials to about 3-6 inches. If they are still green and are going strong, leave them be until they start to wither. The plant gets it’s energy from the sun through it’s leaves. As long as the leaves are green, they are collecting and storing energy. They need as much as they can gather to get through winter. Your plants most likely will not all turn at the same time, so this will be an ongoing process.

Some perennials are super cold tolerant and won’t need to be cut back. You can also leave stems with attractive seed heads for winter interest and to feed wildlife.

Ornamental grasses, though they change color, still look great throughout the winter. These can be left and then cut back in late March.

Clean out and store small pots

Small pots left outside during the winter months have a high risk of cracking and breaking as they freeze and thaw(especially terra cotta). Unless you can bring these potted plants inside, it’s best to empty them and wash them out for next year. Washing out your pots is important for not spreading disease. While you’re at it, you might as well give all your garden tools a nice scrub down so everything is nice and fresh in the spring. This is also a great time to organize all your tools. Your future self will thank you. (:

Cold Season Wellness With Herbs and Spices

As we move into the dark, cold months it is important that we care for our bodies. The sun goes away pretty much right after she shows her face. Temperatures fluctuate for a while and then plummet. Cold and flu season sniffles begin. The stress of the holidays wears on our bodies. Thankfully, nature has provided us with many plants that can help us stay well through the cold season. 


Echinacea for immune support

That beautiful native perennial that we enjoy seeing in the warm months, can help us get through the cold ones. Echinacea is said to be an immune-enhancing herb which helps prevent colds and/or shortens the length of them. It is endemic to eastern and central North America and was used for hundreds of years by Native Americans before European colonizers arrived here. 

Echinacea contains phenols which have high antioxidant properties. “Echinacea also contains alkylamides or alkamides, (not in E. pallida), which have an effect on the immune system”. (Medical News Today)

It can be found in the form of herbal extracts, teas, dried herbs, or capsules. Check out this DIY recipe for an echinacea tincture. 


Elderberry/ Sambucus for cold and flu

Dana making elderberry wine a few years ago

Elderberry has been traditionally used on the skin to treat wounds and taken by mouth to treat respiratory illnesses such as cold and flu. An article put out by the University of Maryland’s Health Center states, “Some evidence suggests that chemicals in elder flower and berries may help reduce swelling in mucous membranes, such as the sinuses, and help relieve nasal congestion. Elder may have anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and anticancer properties”. Elderberry is typically available in liquid or syrup form. Check out this DIY recipe for an elderberry syrup. It can also be found as a capsule and lozenge.


Peppermint and Eucalyptus for sinus relief

The oils of these plants are great nasal decongestants. “Each herb contains compounds that relax the airways and open congested sinuses and nasal passages”. (Mother Earth News) 
I like using these in combination with steam when i’m stuffed up. I can see myself a few years ago when I was super sick and could not breathe out of my nose at all- head under a towel with a steaming bowl of water and drops of Eucalyptus in my lap. It was a sad sight but, it helped. I have also just put drops on the floor of my shower when I’m in there for some extra steam help.


Turmeric and Ginger for aches and pains

You’re cold, frigid and all bunched up tight to keep warm. This tension can make our joints feel  sore and cause achy all over. Turmeric and ginger are in the same family and have powerful anti-inflammatory properties. 
“A recent study from the Journal of Alternative & Complementary Medicine found that a daily dose of 2 gm of curcumin(a compound found in turmeric) to people suffering from osteoarthritis resulted in reports of reduced pain and increased mobility. In addition to soothing sore joints, curcumin is a potent antioxidant, brain health supporter, and strengthener of the vascular system by improving the lining of the blood vessels”. 
Ginger is said to also act as an expectorant and has a warming effect that may help if you’re chilled. Both can be added to dishes raw or made into tea. 


Lemon Balm and Chamomile to unwind

To ease the seasons stresses, it is nice to unwind with a nice warm calming tea. Lemon Balm and Chamomile have both been traditionally used for their calming properties. Lemon Balm “was used as far back as the Middle Ages to reduce stress and anxiety, promote sleep, improve appetite, and ease pain and discomfort from indigestion”. (University of Maryland Health Center) Chamomile is reported to have similar results. They are both commonly found as teas but can also be found as tinctures, extracts, oils and capsules. 



There are many things you can do to incorporate these herbs and spices into your diet over the next few months. When doing it yourself, make sure you research the herb you are using thoroughly before foraging and making your own teas and tinctures. While there are parts of the plant that can be medicinal, other parts of the same plant may be poisonous and it is best to do your research before using the plant yourself. If you're not into growing your own to use or foraging, buying from stores is the next best option and takes away a lot of the guess work. Both are great options! Just make sure to do your homework and find what is best for you. 


Sources:
https://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/elderberry

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/252684.php

http://www.motherearthliving.com/health-and-wellness/cold-busters.aspx?PageId=1

https://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/lemon-balm

http://amazingwellnessmag.com/cold-weather-herb-guide/

http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-and-supplements/lifestyle-guide-11/supplement-guide-chamomile

DIY Forced Bulbs For Winter Blooms

We have already covered that it’s time to get your bulbs in the ground outside for spring blooms, but maybe you’re like me and are impatient. Spring is pretty far off and it would be great to be able to enjoy some blooms in the winter. Well, there is a way! You can force bulbs to bloom in the winter indoors. You just have to trick them a bit.

All you need are pots, some Amaryllis bulbs(or other warm loving bulbs, paperwhites are another great indoor option), and potting mix. The pot you use for your bulb should not be much larger than the bulb itself, unless you want to plant a bunch in on container.

Directions

1. Choose a plump bulb that has some roots at the base and a pot that is just large enough for bulb (or bulbs) — the bulb needs to feel crowded to bloom.

2. Partially fill the pot with potting mix, then position the bulb so that the top third is exposed after

you add more potting soil. Water thoroughly and make sure the water drains from the pot.

3.  Place the pot in bright light and keep the soil moist but not wet. Water only when the top inch

or two of the potting mix is dry to the touch. Over watering at the beginning of the growth cycle

is the main cause of failure.

Tips

The bulb should be kept at room temperature, above 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The warmer the temperature (70 to 80 degrees is ideal), the faster the bulb will sprout and grow. Watering with warm water or providing bottom heat (by setting the pot on a propagation mat or on the top of a refrigerator or warm appliance) may help stimulate growth. Amaryllis plants are tropical so they like the warmth.

Within two to eight weeks, a thick flower stalk should shoot up. Flat leaves will follow as the flower stalk grows. Some varieties of Amaryllis take more time to sprout than others, so be patient. Check to make sure that the bulb has remained firm, and do not overwater.

Rotate the pot slightly every few days so that the flower stalk receives consistent exposure on all sides and thus grows straight. Move the plant out of direct sunlight when the flower buds begin to show color.

Having a bunch of these beauties can really be a ray of sunshine in the dark winter months. They also make great gifts for that holiday that I shall not name yet.

Top 10 Street Trees in NYC and Their Brilliant Fall Color

I hope we are all enjoying this marvelous show being put on by the trees outside. I have always wanted to hone my tree identification skills and maybe you have too! Now is a great time to learn because they stand apart even more than usual by showing their colors. Here is a little guide to the ten most common street trees in NYC and their fall color. Let’s go tree IDing with our new super sweet skills!

London Planetree, Platanus × acerifolia

McGolrick Park in Greenpoint is full of huge London Planetrees

Littleleaf Linden, Tilia cordata

Norway Maple, Acer platanoides

Green ash, Fraxinus pennsylvanica

Callery pear, Pyrus calleryana

Red Maple, Acer rubrum

Honey Locust, Gleditsia triacanthos

Silver maple, Acer saccharinum

Pin oak, Quercus palustris

Ginkgo, Ginkgo biloba

If you're feeling confident in your tree identification skills, go try this matching game! 

For some facts about New York City trees, like how much carbon they store or how much pollution they remove from the air(it's a lot!) head over to MillionTreesNYC. 

Happy tree watching, everyone.