SELF-SUFFICIENT SALAD FROM MY SANCTUARY

I am still a long way from the utopian dream of self-sufficiency. However I am most definitely reaping the rewards from the small steps and initiative we have taken in our garden this year.

As I quest through overgrown foliage in our vegetable beds, I visually make note of the week by week; day by day; hour by hour changes that are constantly happening within the rhythm of our garden. 

While I tune in and out of the birds provoking my cat, I simply observe both the steady and the unexpected flow of life within my little sanctuary. 

A quote that recently resonated with me from Maria Rodale perfectly said -  “With gardening, we harvest more than food and flowers; we harvest health and healing.”

People have been playing in the dirt for millennia but a large majority of us have become disconnected from nature. By putting your hands in soil, caring for something and being responsible for it to grow, we become connected with Mama Earth. No matter how small, simply growing any plant can be rewarding - to our mental, physical or spiritual health. (Trust me...I managed to grow cherry tomatoes and bullet chillis with a tiny hanging purple lamp and a wooden crate when I lived in a highrise apartment in Beijing and it brought a smile to my face everyday!)

TODAY'S HARVEST:

Cherry tomatoes, spring onions, a skinny asparagus that randomly popped up, coriander, calendula, Mauritian cucumber and creeping wood sorrel. (A follow up post regarding the cucumber soon to come) Mixed with honey from our hives for a delicious sweet dressing.

CREEPING WOOD SORREL

Oxalis corniculata - is commonly put into the category of garden weed. Unfortunately they were living up to this expectation as they had overwhelmingly started to suffocate my vegetable plants. However, a quick and careful search informed me that all parts of wood sorrel are edible including leaves, flowers, seed pods, and roots. So we gathered up a couple of handfuls to add to our salad. Wood sorrel has a slightly bitter, lemon-like flavour which complemented the refreshing flavours of cucumber and tomatoes.

Wood sorrel is rich in Vitamin C. Historically, it was used to treat fevers and urinary infections, Wood sorrel contains oxalic acid so it should be consumed in moderation as it can inhibit calcium consumption. Although completely safe in low dosage and a varied diet, people with gout and kidney stones should avoid oxalic acid.

Their heart shaped leaves fold up at night and open during the day. They are mostly green but can also be purple. Creeping wood sorrel flower is usually yellow coloured with five petals. Wood sorrel seed pods resemble tiny okra pods. They explode at the slightest touch when ripe, scattering their seeds several feet into the air.

Since moving back home, the magickal growth in my sanctuary has strengthened my understanding of patience, humility and our connection to the earth. Most importantly, it has opened a new realm of playfulness and creativity to explore.

Follow us on Instagram for more updates from our sanctuary! @thelondonalchemists

Moni Dajee, founder of The London Alchemists - artist, creator, explorer, beekeeper and avid practitioner of natural alchemy.