Oak Moon Summer News

The Year of the Fire Horse has definitely been one of explosive, fast-moving energy in our lives and on the geopolitical stage so far. Has this also been true for you?

For us, Spring brought unforeseen challenges and delays but also expansion and new opportunities. We moved into a new home, planted three different gardens, and said goodbye to our beloved best friend and OMB’s Chief Fun Officer, Morty. Morty battled mast cell tumors since he was 5, and one recently and quickly grew on his neck and ruptured. He was the happiest boy until the end, just shy of his 11th birthday. His heavy breathing and happy-go-lucky attitude will be missed in the garden and our daily life.

After all of these transitions, we are still in the planning phase for many of our goals for the year. But! We have already accomplished a few unexpected successes, which we’re excited to share with you today.

This edition will cover the current phase on the wheel of the year for the celestial happenings, Tulsi Basil as our botanical spotlight, native wildflower garden consultations for fall, and a few other updates below.

First of all, we had a great class at the Cumberland Folk School in April, and a wonderful Medicinal Garden walk at Rising Fawn Gardens last weekend. Thank you to all who attended :) Amanda accidentally printed extra handouts for the extracts class at the library, oops!, so now we’re happy to provide them for purchase to our subscribers for $20- shipping included.

See a preview of the Beyond the Folk Method: Crafting Extracts with Science & Spirit course handout and purchase for $20 here.

We’re also excited to announce that Pine’s Herbals is providing herbal tinctures, including custom formulas designed by Amanda, for our herbal clients! More details on this below.

Thanks for being an OMB subscriber! We hope you enjoy this season’s edition.

Lughnasadh or Lammas and Green Corn Ceremony

Yesterday, August 1st, was the halfway point between the Summer Solstice and Fall Equinox; it is a special time of year for various cultures around the world, including one of the cultures we honor, indigeneous Europeans, through Lughnasadh and Lammas celebrations.

Lammas, or Lughnasadh, pronounced "LOO-nuh-suh", is a day for honoring the peak of summer and all its bounty, the first reaping of grain, and the acknowledgment of the coming of the cooler, darker portion of the year.

In Gaelic tradition, it has many of the common practices we see with other major holidays, such as feasting, games, and reflection, in this case on the coming grain harvest. The day is associated with the God Lugh and honoring his foster mother, Tailtiu, for sacrificing herself to clear the land for agriculture. Lammas, interpreted as “loaf mass”, is a Christian-specific spelling and celebration of the holiday, particularly with Catholic tradition. Many people today who want to reconnect with their ancestral European roots have begun celebrating this folk tradition by baking bread and expressing gratitude for the year's agricultural success.

The Cherokee, as well as other Southeastern native tribes such as the Muscogee (Creek), Seminole, and Choctaw, celebrate this time with the Green Corn Ceremony. Not only is it a harvest celebration honoring Selu the Corn Mother and the first Cherokee Woman, but it is also a time that emphasizes a spiritual reset. Lasting a few days to a week, ceremonies focus on the forgiveness of past arguments, grievances, and debts, and on purification through fasting, herbal medicines and purging, bathing in natural bodies of water, and deep cleaning homes.

The third culture we honor, modern American culture, does not have a holiday or ritual associated with this day or time of year. The closest thing we celebrate is Labor Day at the beginning of September, which marks the end of the summer season and busy work life with celebrations of outdoor recreation and cookouts full of food from the summer harvest.

With this in mind, we are starting a new family tradition to bake corn bread on August 1 to honor Lammas, Lughnasadh, and the Green Corn Ceremony simultaneously.

Want to join us?

Tulsi - Holy Basil

We are growing and drinking lots of Tulsi Basils this summer, and we discussed them on our walk at Rising Fawn Gardens last weekend (photographed above), so this plant easily takes the place of our botanical spotlight this season!

Tulsi Basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum and/or Ocimum sanctum Linn) is known as an adaptogen in herbal medicine, which means it’s an herb that helps the body adapt to stress.

To support these claims, there is ever-increasing scientific evidence that Tulsi can address physical, chemical, metabolic, and psychological stressors through a unique combination of pharmacological actions.

The beneficial properties include protecting organs and tissues against chemical stress from industrial pollutants and heavy metals and physical stress from prolonged physical exertion, ischemia, physical restraint, exposure to cold, and excessive noise.

Tulsi can also counter metabolic stress by normalizing blood glucose, blood pressure, and lipid levels, as well as psychological stress through its positive effects on memory and cognitive function, and through its anxiolytic and antidepressant properties.

Additionally, Tulsi boasts broad-spectrum anti-microbial activity that’s beneficial for both humans and animals.

For thousands of years, Asian communities have held traditions of spiritual practices with Tulsi, particularly daily rituals, further expanding this miraculous herb into all 3 realms - body, mind, and spirit.

Ayurvedic texts describe Holy Basil as a pillar of holistic herbal medicine and a goddess incarnated in plant form (the mother medicine of nature). Tulsi remains one of the most prominent herbs used in Ayurvedic medicine today and is revered as a sacred plant throughout India.

Tulsi is traditionally taken as an herbal tea or mixed with ghee, clarified butter.

Think Tulsi would be a good herb for you? Book a Holistic Herbal Consult with Amanda to find out!

Pine’s Herbals, run by CoreyPine Shane- Amanda’s teacher and mentor, is now providing herbal tinctures for Amanda’s holistic herbal clients!

Because of this, you now have access to single herbal extracts (like Tulsi), or Amanda can develop a synergistic formula specific to your unique needs to foster balance in your mind, body, and spirit.

If you’re interested in taking natural, herbal remedies to navigate ailments or reach your health goals, this is the perfect place to start.

Schedule your herbal consult to learn more!

Native Wildflower Gardens

The upcoming fall season is the ideal time to start a native wildflower garden with our Gardening Consultation.

These gardens provide much-needed habitat and sustenance for pollinators, birds, and small mammals, especially as development removes green spaces.

They also provide beauty to your yard or field and the opportunity to make flower arrangements to bring inside your home or share with loved ones throughout most of the year!

While boasting all this, they require minimal maintenance, so they’re a great starting point for anyone new to gardening or those who prefer not to be in the heat and dirt.

Interested in learning more about adding this to your property? Schedule a 15-minute info call today to see if we’re a good fit!

We greatly appreciate you reading through this edition of our newsletter and hope you learned something new that can connect you more deeply with nature.

Don’t forget to order your personal copy of the Herbal Extracts Course for $20! so you can make your own herbal remedies at home.

Let us know if you’re familiar with Lughnasadh, Lammas, or the Green Corn Ceremony! Have you grown or taken Tulsi, Holy Basil before? We’d love to hear from you and what you’re doing to connect with the cosmos and plants.

As always, we’re here to help Guide Growth with Nature’s Wisdom and would love your support through Our Services.

Wishing you a happy late summer season,

Amanda & Derik