Restoring our spirits in Winter

Early last spring I visited Moss Hill Farm with a group of fellow farmers.  Floyd Keisler grows using biodynamic principles.  It was an amazing experience and I left with severe soil envy and some great ideas.  While there we learned about some of the basics of biodynamics and what stood out to me the most was when he spoke about the lunar and solar rhythms of the earth.  He said that the earth breathes...it breathes in (gathers energy) in the winter, and breathes out (expends energy) in the summer.  (A great visual here.)

Winter is really the most important season for gardening.  Not because we are busy but because it gives us a chance to rest, breathe in, and gather our energy for the next growing season.  It gives us a chance to reflect upon last seasons' garden and review what worked and what didn't.  It gives our soil a chance to recover, break down organic matter and prepare for the exhalation of energy in the summer.

So, in reflection, I have a few things to share about 2014...some victories, and some failures, and some circumstances that I just had to accept.

Around the beginning of January this year, I stepped on the scale and registered the heaviest weight of my life.  I had been on a 6 month sugar binge...cookies, cake, ice cream, candy, ice cream...did I mention ice cream?  I even had a box of sweets under the passenger seat of my car.  Just seeing that in print is embarrassing.  Here I was, a gardener, grower of organic, chemical free goodness, and I was killing myself with processed sugary foods.  I nearly wrecked my car reaching under the seat for one of my sweet treats.   I vowed then and there to eat healthier.  I hate the word "diet", so I just decided to eat good food and see what happened.  If I didn't lose weight, at least I would be eating nutrient dense foods and that can't be bad, right?

I started by cutting out sugar.  I didn't allow myself to eat sweets at all.  I stocked up on fruit, nuts, and oatmeal.  I brought my lunches to my day job to avoid the fast food trap, and I cut out all carbonated and/or sweetened drinks.  I began using local raw honey in my coffee.  I ate delicious and nutritious food from my garden.  And, slowly but surely, the weight began to melt away.

In March I hosted a work day on the farm.  A fantastic group of great people showed up and really worked...cleaning the stable, filling our raised beds with soil, turning compost piles, and gathering horse manure from the pasture.  I was humbled and grateful for their help.  In just one day they accomplished what would have taken a month by myself.  At the time, I was having some pain in my left shoulder when I would shovel or carry heavy objects.  Of course I ignored it because I had a lot of work to do!  This turned out to be a mistake.  You see, I didn't rest over the winter.  I spent it building more raised beds, moving soil, etc.  It finally got to the point around mid-summer that I couldn't raise my arm over my shoulder.  Thus ended my gardening season.  Here I had put all my efforts into this being my best season ever, and I was forced to rest.  I also let pride get the best of me and didn't ask for help.  It was, and is, very disappointing but now I am pain free and my injury did not get the best of me, it only delayed my plans a little.  I still have the results of all the hard labor -- 52 raised beds full of fantastic soil that will only get better each year.

So while I didn't accomplish everything that I wanted to this year, I did learn a lot and will apply those lessons to next years garden.  Even though I can't wait to get my hands dirty in the spring, I'm going to take the winter months to breathe in, rest, and be ready to dive in next year refreshed and ready!