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Owen Nelson

@owen_nelson

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Gardener, Wildcrafter, Local Food, Medicine and Fermentation Enthusiast, living in Alberta, Canada.

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Hey folks! It’s been a wet spring so far and things have grown way different from last year! I’ve been at this for about 17 years, and I can’t say I’m much better but I have learned a few things!
1. Nature wants the soil covered, so you choose the plants or she’ll choose for you. Or use mulch.
2. The soil needs to be fed, not the plants. THE SOIL! Fruit and veggies are hungry plants. Biology in the soil breaks down nutrients and makes it available, so keep the microbes happy. Chemical fertilizer bypasses this by force feeding the plants with salt based chemistry, killing the biology and damaging roots at the same time. Mineral and vitamin rich food comes from natural healthy soil. Compost is key! Make aerated compost tea!
3. Have a plan for what you are growing. Why are you growing it!? Make sure you utilize what comes out, if it’s for food or beauty, come up with ways to enjoy it. Ferment, can, and cook fresh. Dry and freeze things. Make bouquets of flowers!
4. Keep track of when things are planted and harvested, and learn to start things throughout the season to keep crops coming.
5. Learn to save seeds from the best crops, the healthiest plants. Keep the cycle going, and they will adapt to your climate. You can even encourage different aspects. I have a variety of peppers that now have bigger and less spicy fruits. I’ve grown them and saved seed for about 15 years with this in mind.
6. Lean into perennial foods to make your food production easier. Asparagus, strawberries, fruit trees and bushes, wild vegetables like milkweed.
7. Start with smaller spaces to manage them well, rather than growing way too much and getting overwhelmed and burnt out. (Still learning this one)
I’ve been volunteering a bit at the community garden more and managing a couple extra plots. I am always excited to see new gardeners, most of the time they are older than me, it would be nice to see more young people into it.
How do I get more young people into it?!
I see a lot of young people trying to be healthier and stay fit. Guess what does it all!? Out in the sun getting vitamin D, getting exercise, calming the anxiety and stress, getting deep nourishment!
Happy summer✌🏼 by @owen_nelson

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3 months ago

Fireweed tea is a staple in my house! I harvest it wild, wilt it, then roll by hand or grind it and let it oxidize for 24-48 hours before freezing, then drying it. It cures for about a month or two before it becomes an amazing tea! It can continue to age and get better flavor for up to three years.

(Also check out The Basement: Luke Caverns on YouTube for some interesting info about North American history as well as bits of history from around the world.)
#fireweed by @owen_nelson

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4 months ago

Hey folks! Welcome to my life lately. Lots of different things going on. Gardens, good food, good people and animals, wood working, a golf trip, and so much more!
Slowly headed into a life that is filled with meaning and purpose, as well as balance with friends and family. I am so grateful to my mom and partner Steph for looking after my plants and animal while I was gone on a golf trip. Grateful to my boss Todd for setting us up to go and everything else he does.
Grateful to all creation for the thriving life that chooses to come back after every winter, and the sun and moon for keeping their steady trajectories through the sky. I have moments of lucidity, awe and enchantment where I am amazed all this exists, even amidst the chaos and minutia of daily work and schedules. Amazed at how much perspective can change our experience of reality. Contemplation and a bright intellect really is crucial to grasp the immensity and beauty of life, especially in this age where distraction is paramount. To sit in the shade of a tree that has just leafed out, and feel the sap flowing up, see the insects waking up, hear the birds singing and making homes for future young! What a unique existence. Recently I have had a shift in my appreciation of mankind, how resilient we are, and how amazing it is that we persist through all kinds of troubles and stress. I have a new respect for the material things in my life, feeling the human energy that went into making them. I used to be so hard on things, constantly breaking things and not feeling that bad. Now I strive to be more gentle, knowing the true cost to life and humans time and energy. I sometimes wish I could just live the idealistic life of peace in a garden, less machines and more time spent with animals and nature, with good neighbors and community nearby. Anyone else feeling this?!
Wishing you all good health and peace! Be well friends!
#garden #community #food #nature #romantic by @owen_nelson

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5 months ago

Hey folks, happy spring!
I’m pumped for another year at the new house. Reno’s are coming along, as is the yard!
I bought a dwarf fig last fall, and it’s started producing fruit already! Should be interesting to see how they taste.
I also scaled way back on what I’m planting this year, as I now realize how productive a garden in full sun can be!(other place was not ideal for a garden)
The mushroom grow tent has been turned into my seedling starting area! I’ve got ginger, gynostemma, overwintered rosemary, peppers, tomatoes, a lot of herbs, onions, cabbage, a large amount of flowering annuals and perennials, and a ton of house plants propagated.
Might have extra to share next month!
I probably say this every year but if you have a yard, and aren’t growing a garden, why not? Have you been to the grocery store lately? Paying outrageous prices? Any idea how poor the nutrition is in most produce/food that come out of the stores? Yeah I know gardening is work, but the pay off in my mind is soo worth it.
Maybe this is your year to start one if you haven’t, and if you do grow most years what are you growing this year? Anything new? Prioritizing anything? I’m aiming for more calories and more minerals! 3 sister guilds, big potato patches, fruit trees, and super herbs!
Wishing you all good health and happiness! Remember the good, listen to the birds, rejoice in the life waking up. Peace ✌🏼 by @owen_nelson

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6 months ago

Hey folks! It’s harvest season!
I did not expect anything like this! The amount of produce I have pulled off has been overwhelming. It feels like this is my first actual year of successful gardening…even though its been many years!
Might be the full sun location with the perfect amount of rain this year. This place is a challenge to grow anything most years.
The sweet and spicy peppers have been super productive this year and they are so tasty! Sweeter than any store bought pepper! Some ways i use them: Smoked, dried, roasted and put in olive oil, salsa, pasta sauce, hot sauce.
Tomatoes! The tomatoes this year!! I actually had produce overwhelm this year, like got a little stressed looking at the massive piles of tomato, begging to be made into things. Good problem to have I guess hah. I’m making: salsa, paste, chutney, pasta sauce, sun dried in truffle oil/fancy olive oil, possibly ketchup and bbq sauce.
Beans and squash are still drying and ripening, but the corn has been pulled off, braided together and hung up. Taco season is almost here!! Home made tortillas, wild and local meat, all homegrown fixings, home made taco seasoning…. You get the idea.
The wild volunteer plum beside my moms place had unreal production this year. Extremely sweet! I eat a lot fresh. The rest have been made into jalapeño plum sauce, chutney and fruit leather!
Garlic and onions produced decently this year, and I’ve got everyone who asked this spring lined up for some potent garlic.
Peas for miso. Using Aspergillus oryzae to break down starches and proteins, miso made from peas is next level! So much umami.
Also a little update on the house: got another room painted and baseboards on. It’s slowly coming together.
Finding time to feel the change of season, rest and process all of life’s experiences hasn’t been easy, but I recognize the importance of balance. If you followed me through a day you might think otherwise but I do actually make an effort to recharge and relax.
Having friends and family around helps me remember we are a community, and that the day to day “work” isn’t everything. Connection is just as important as productivity.
Happy fall folks, be well!! ✌🏼🫶🏼🌿🌲 by @owen_nelson

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a year ago

Abundant year in the garden!
This has to be the best garden I’ve ever had! I really put a lot into it this spring and have been developing some long term strategies for fertility and productivity.
I bought alot of peat moss this year(which I don’t like to buy) and amended with a lot of various organic ingredients.
I am so amazed by the production so far! The cabbage looks amazing, tomatos and peppers are HEAVY with fruit, corn beans and squash are exploding, and the peas are off the charts(actually my first good year of peas thanks to Ross’s advice).
The garlic harvest went really well and even the rye harvest turned out decent!
I set up a clever strategy for building soil in my garden using the pathway: rye and clover, set up to be mowed down continually to provide mulch and fix nitrogen 👌🏼.

My intention in the future is to have most of my inputs come from the yard, and not spend so much on fertilizer. In the years to come this will be taken care of. Huge piles of decomposing leaves, homemade fertilizer, lots of compost, worm castings, comfrey for tea, etc.
Wishing you all health and happiness! Be well folks! by @owen_nelson

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a year ago

Will love you always dad!
He passed away on may 19th, a bit of a shock to our family, though we did know it was coming.
I am so grateful for him as a father and as a friend, he helped bring me into this world and also shaped a lot of my attitudes and ethics. He fostered our passions and supported any endeavour with all he could. Whether it was music, art, anything construction and building related, vehicles, if you needed help, you name it he would make an effort.
My favorite memories are always a mix of working together, playing music together at jam sessions, and wandering around the yard checking out the plants, especially the vines, they were his favorite thing to look after. Feeding them fish fertilizer and all of us remarking at how huge they got. We would pick the grapes together and I would keep him in the loop with every stage of my wine making.
He would always have stories to tell, and many of them were from his world travels as a younger man.
I still look for you walking up my back steps, or down the alley to my yard, but now I also look in the trees rustling in the breeze or the birds singing when I think of you, as though your spirit is speaking through them.
I like to think you have started a new adventure, travels in a new realm. New stories to acquire.
Thank you for all your love and support, you were loved by many! by @owen_nelson

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a year ago

Hey folks! Happy spring!
Life has been busier than ever, but I wouldn’t change a thing. We have made some good progress on the kitchen, painted, got new flooring in, installed the cabinets and island. I needed to take a break from the indoor work so I could build my greenhouse, as I was missing the one from the rental(greenhouses are the best thing to have in spring, even just to go sit in there).I had a plan all designed up to use the windows and salvaged wood, but my dad mentioned that the neighbor was taking down his old car canopy and thought I could use it. So we scrapped the design and set up the canopy, built frames for the windows and covered it in poly. I also set up a raised bed and built shelves for it. It’s gets nice and toasty in there now on sunny days, probably +25-30 inside when it’s 10-15 outside.
Tilled up the back portion of the yard for a big garden! It’s going to be pumping out the produce! Already planted peas, greens, and onions.
I have to admit that there are moments of physical exhaustion, pushing myself to work after working all day, going until dark every night and eating supper later than I’d like. That exhaustion feels good though, like the body is spaghetti after being useful for a long day. I mean you can’t bank your energy for later in life, you can’t get your time back, so why not use yourself up everyday, push the body in a celebratory way, like”look how amazing this creation is, to do all this!” You can’t live life for the weekend, it has to be lived everyday.
There are two ways I have found that we can approach this way of life, the first: pushing through the exhaustion with caffeine and stimulants, refined food and sugar, leading us in a downward spiral, becoming more dependent and exhausted. This is actually the less expensive, more comfortable, easy route. You just ride on autopilot and seek quick fixes to remain “active”.
Or the second way: nourishing ourselves with the highest quality food and water, eating fresh, getting sunlight, supplementing nutrients when needed, cleansing, detoxing, deep nourishment through organ meats or wild foods, exercising, meditation. this is the upward spiral. You choose! Be well folks! by @owen_nelson

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2 years ago

Hey folks! Here’s a few random photos/videos from my life right now. It’s been a busy, chaotic time. I feel like I’ve been scrambling to reestablish patterns and some semblance of normalcy, but in the end the only constant is change.
Maurice (the cat) and I have been doing our best to adapt and make the best of the changes.
I spent Christmas break building cabinets with my family, and now over the last month have torn out the old kitchen, set up a temporary kitchen, knocked out some walls, and reframed the new walls.
Meals have been a bit sporadic and unplanned, but I managed to make a honey cured, mesquite smoked venison ham the other day, which turned out really good!(maybe a little dry, but I expected that)
Also planning out the gardens and starting to plant onions and a few slow growing herbs. Last photo is some of the last of my fireweed tea with some rose petals, the smell is divine!
Wishing you all good health, happiness and abundance this season!
#renovation #homeowner #construction #fireweed #gardening by @owen_nelson

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2 years ago

It was a successful hunt this week!
While I don’t normally like to share pictures like this, I also think it’s an important topic, and we shouldn’t shy away from the life and death of our existence. I have a great respect for all life and find it hard to put into words how I feel about this. On the one hand I eat meat, which I find gives me the most energy and is a conscious choice at this time. I do my best to source the highest quality and most ethical meat possible. On the other hand I have a deep sensitivity to all life and find the act of “harvesting” an animal darkens a part of me, and adds a heaviness to the soul. My conclusion is that I would rather be the one to take that weight, with deep gratitude and respect, rather than ignorantly consuming products with little to no regard for the life of the organism it came from. This disconnect is what causes a lot of problems in our world, and I think shedding some light on where our food comes from, how it lived and was harvested can bring some balance to our ever consuming, black hole of a culture. Think about your next meal, where did each item come from, how was it treated while being grown or raised, and while being harvested?
Ok morality rant over.
I am doing my diligence to use as much of this animal as possible. From nose to tail as they say. I harvested all the fat for tallow, bones for broth, cut out every bit of meat including the liver and heart, the hide was saved, and I even extracted the brain to attempt to tan the hide.
I am so grateful for the land owners and the opportunity to hike, hunt and forage there. Just south of elkwater, where prairie meets boreal ecosystems a lot of unique species exist. I hiked for hours, saw coyotes, woodpeckers, chickadees, magpies, multiple deer, and even a couple big ravens. I managed to pick a good amount of hawthorns and rose hips while I was scouting around.
I am going to make an effort to get out next week again if I get the time, but I will admit I’m a bit exhausted from the very long days of hiking and processing.
Be well folks!
#hunting #wildmeat #wildfood #nosetotail #whitetail #diet #wildharvested #sustainability by @owen_nelson

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2 years ago

Hey beautiful beings, I got my own place!
It’s been an intense year, getting told I had to move out of my rental, trying to find a new place, and finally having the chance to actually buy something! I can’t say how grateful I am to my parents for all the help and support! They are THE most amazing people, if you’ve met them I think you would agree! I am also grateful to my friends and partner who have stepped up to make time to help me!
I have been setting up the yard for all kinds of future projects. Planted fruit trees, spruce and junipers, oak, birch and ash trees, grape vines, raspberries, and even got a cover crop of winter rye in! On top of working every day, I have spent every evening either renovating the house with my dad or cleaning up the yard and planting. It’s a bit rough right now, but things are coming together.
I would love to take you all on this journey, and I wonder if anyone would like to participate in future permaculture workshops here!? I have an awesome vision for what I want this place to be, and it will utilize a lot of sustainable practices, and be a haven for all life. Rainwater catchment, food forests, herbal medicine gardens, wildflower gardens, cob structures, solar projects, bat houses, not to mention food preservation and storage strategies.
I have also had some profound insights into health and wellness as I push myself to my limits and find what works to keep the energy up and the body running happily. I think our work ethic, mental and physical energy should be the testament to our healthcare regime. This move and all the work has proven to me that it’s worth taking care of my health, a good diet, leaning into some powerful herbal/nutritional supplements, and a mental/physical practice has been key to having abundant energy and a good attitude. I will share more on this in another post!
Stay tuned and be well folks! by @owen_nelson

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2 years ago

Hey folks! It’s the year of fireweed! 🌿
If you don’t know about this plant, it’s time you did.
Found only in the wild, and almost always after a fire or disturbance. Epilobium angustifolium is native to large parts of the northern hemisphere, and grows in large patches in meadows around coniferous forests. It has a unique shape and puts on an incredible display of blooms in late July/early August. I used to drive by this plant blooming in big swaths, and I just burned to know what it was.
Once I started learning it was like a bottomless well of information; it’s history, utility, healing powers, and just overall gifts to the world.
I actually feel like this plant longs to be used in ALL ways, and in all my experience with herbs, this one gives it all. Cordage and fiber for materials/clothing, food, internal and external medicine, used to make alcohol, seed fluff for tinder and stuffing pillows and so much more.
So now THE TEA! Pick it, wilt it, bruise it, freeze it, chop it(or grind it), dry it, age it, drink it 🤓 It actually reminds me a little bit of making wine, with all the steps, and getting better with age.
The smell of good fireweed leaves smell slightly sweet to start, but when bruised smell like cut grass. After only an hour or two that smell transforms due to the enzymes breaking down and things oxidizing. It’s like fruity floral heaven! I’m amazed every time I do this, I’ll just stand there sniffing it. Then it’s left to sit for a day. Or two or three if you know what to “smell” for. It gets better and better, then starts to smell a little sour. I have played with this range and honestly didn’t think 72 was going to be good, but it was one of the best. After the 24 hours I seal it into a freezer bag and freeze it for at least 24 more. The once it’s solid I can chop it up and dry it. The freezing cracks the cell walls, making the nutrients and flavour even more available, and chopping or grinding it makes for a better release into hot water.
This tea has changed my whole herb game. I can’t say enough about it. The fact that it tastes so good, and has a staggering list of benefits amazes me. Cheers! #fireweed #smelleverything #ivanchai by @owen_nelson

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2 years ago