Maieshe Ljin

Could you use a large pair of chopsticks? A pair of long twigs that have been debarked? Perhaps a pair of wooden paddles tied/wrapped to a wire which is curled into a spring?

I’m sorry to hear about the sickness that resulted from trying to hibernate! What did you do?

I know oversleeping causes sickness and depression and that sounds to be what happened. Is that what you did, try to sleep through the winter? Or did you do something different?

Tree squirrels are rather amazing in how they build their nests all the way up in the trees while many of the other animals shelter under the snow or burrow into the earth. They make their great leaf-wad dreys where the cold winds blow and blow. It is inspiring also as someone interested in inspiration for building in natural wild sources. If I ever find one on the ground it would be interesting to examine and see how it is made.

My friend was telling me that they also make decoy dreys so as to confuse predators. You will see clusters of dreys, two or three in different trees in close-ish proximity and it’s possible that all but one are empty and never were meant for habitation.

I have had the brown goo problem often enough... it usually does come from not feeding it enough. When I keep sourdough it has to be fed once every two days at the very least. I make the consistency like Sandor Katz describes, a thick pancake batter consistency. When starting out, as soon as I start seeing the very first signs of bubbling and fermenting, I consider it time to start using and feeding it.

It seems good to check to make sure that the flour and water you are using are clean. I haven't had issues with that, using (admittedly questionable) well water and freshly ground flour from organic grain (mostly rye these days).

And too low of a temperature can also cause the brown goo I notice so it may be good to find a warm spot for it. It seems healthiest to me when it is bubbling well after about six hours. If it stays in a cold place, the yeast is sluggish--it doesn't bubble up much, but sours a bit--and most of the fermentation is lactic acid bacteria.

I recently learned to make sourdough crackers and they have been very good. Anyway I love making all sorts of small quantities of tested recipes and culinary experiments and so I’d quite enjoy making my own. But then I’d want to be the one to give them away too and that is even more fun.

Another thing to remember is that the dead comfrey leaves are supposed to be the best overwintering spots for spiders. So they may be a little dark and drab but ecologically they are amazing! It is also true that they tend to flop over every once in a while when not cut.

Things are quite frozen over here, though around the new year (January thaw) I could still harvest parsnips, mountain mint and various other greens.

One thing I have done is to bring Japanese knotweed rootstocks inside and let them make shoots. They are rather slow but maybe if there’s another thaw and I can bring an entire crown in, it would be more productive. Supposedly people have done this with pokeweed too but I’m letting my poke establish better first.

Thank you so much Thom! That article is fascinating.

Update on observations and experiments...

When my body temperature is low I find that I can just eat and eat and eat and seek out everything calorie dense. I keep noticing this after being outside for a long time, especially when I wear clothes that aren't the warmest. My mind can get laser-focused on food. I am also more drowsy at night and feel a greater desire to sleep, which keeps the body temperature slightly lower anyway. There are so many interconnected factors that can point towards a shallower or deeper form of adaptation to cold. Though some of these effects, even at only mildly lowered temperature, ended up being against what I usually find desirable, like decreased mental activity and clumsiness. And the appetite was frustrating before I understood what was going on. But when desired and intended, all these things are fine.

Another thing, though, is this: what does one say to other people? I'm imagining the looks on people's faces when told, "Don't expect to hear from me for a few days--I'll be going into hibernation"!

One of the gardening techniques I tend to use is making hills. Sometimes this is a "hilling up" like with potatoes, sometimes I flip the soil over in a round shape, at other times I bury food scraps, often all three. At the same time I dig a trench, which collects water to soak deep into the soil, and then deposit the soil uphill of that trench, as a means of gradual terracing. This leads toward a diverse, varied topography that resembles that of an old growth forest; water is soaked into the hillside, making the water more available to plants, and at the same time forming well drained beds for growing vegetables and trees (which may wick up water from lower levels of soil).

Maybe this would be useful? Especially if your plans are more food forest oriented, which sounds to be the case.

Morn