Happy Fall!

I’m slowing down and sharing with you My Top 10 Fall Favorite Things to DO in supporting my healing and health this season (therapeutic horticulture style – of course):

01 | Oven Drying Herbs

It’s SIMPLE and EASY!

I was a “hang‘em – dry’em” kind of herb gal BUT now I’m a “snip’em and bake’em” type of gal. I used to max out my closets with lots of herbs AND forget about bundles hanging in the basement. So, this year I’m switching to snip and dry. 👩‍🍳

Here’s my simple oven-drying herb process I use:

• After cutting the herbs, bring them inside to wash.
• Pull the leaves off the stem and place the leaves evenly on an oven tray (I use tinfoil as the base).
• Turn the oven to 170 degrees (The lowest setting)
• Bake at the lowest setting for an hour and a half.
• After one hour, I check on the herbs.
• You know the herbs are done drying when all the leaves are crunchy. If some are not crunchy, you can put them back in the oven for a few more minutes.
• Self-Reflect: What will you be using these herbs for in the future? How will it make you feel? (i.e. I will be using them on my food. I will feel pride, confidence, and joy).

02 | Activating Sense of Touch  

From picking up leaves and saving seeds to pinching off spent blooms (hello, marigolds! You are my favorite to pinch), I intentionally focus on using more of my sensory tool of “touch” this season. And, here’s why:

Any type of change makes me anxious, and for some reason, the changing of seasons rattles my nerves.

Through research, it turns out, that activating your sense of touch helps calm the nerves. What I’ve realized is there are a lot of fall gardening activities that activate the sense of touch – So, there is a purpose to saving seed this time of season. 

03 | Companion Planting

Companion planting is placing certain plants together to provide each other with something beneficial. There is so much wisdom from companion planting that I have applied to creating and nurturing healthy relationships in my life.

It’s probably one of my favorite concepts I teach in therapeutic horticulture. The best fall companion combo I love to work with in TH sessions (and at my house) is Daffodils +  Pansies. You can plant these together in a container or in the ground. 

Daffodils + Pansies – Companion Planting Information:

• Right now (It’s September as I’m writing this) Daffodils are in bulb form and pansies are blooming. You should be able to find them both at your local nursery.
• Whether you’re planting in a container or ground, the daffodil bulbs go in the soil first (plant bulbs in the soil 2-3 times as deep as their bulb height. For example, if a bulb is 2 inches, plant four inches in the soil).
• Next, plant a few pansies on top.
• You can enjoy the beauty of the pansies now and then welcome the beauty of daffodils in the Spring!
• If you want to connect deeper with companion planting and how this concept can enhance your social health, subscribe to Serenity over Stress and look out 👀 for the companion planting session.

04 | Apple Picking & Pumpkin Patch Visiting

In my opinion, Fall isn’t complete without visiting apple orchards and pumpkin patches with my family. Thank goodness for these types of farms and fun! 

Before therapeutic horticulture, I never paid much attention to the environment needed for apples and pumpkins to grow.

So, if you’re visiting one of these farms this fall, notice the surroundings of where the apples and pumpkins grow. Notice the actual tree where you are picking the apples from…

What does it look like?

How does the tree trunk feel?

When you are aware of your surroundings… you really will feel more connected to yourself and the season this way. 

05  | Sharing Garden Treasures

Dahlia’s are in full bloom and are our superstars. This summer, they taught me so much about resilience and the tools needed to keep going no matter how defeating difficulty might seem.

They are a beautiful treasure to harvest in the fall for your mind, heart, spirit, and body. 

06| S’mores Fun

If my kids could, I’m pretty sure they would have s’mores every day of their lives. And, my inner kid would too. Our favorite thing to do at the end of a fall day is gather around the fire pit at the farm and roast s’mores! And, did you know you can reuse your wood ash from the fire? Here are two ways I reuse the wood ash after a s’mores session:

• Sprinkle into our chicken spa baths (it helps clean their feathers)
• Mix into the soil in areas we are putting to rest for the season

As I am reusing the wood ash around the farm, I love reflecting on all the family joy that danced around the wood turning into ash.

07 | Setting Up My AeroGarden

I’m in LOVE with my AeroGarden (This is not a paid advertisement). My favorite part about this water garden is how user-friendly it is.

If you’re like me, I do not have time for difficult setups. And, this is the easiest hydroponic setup I’ve ever come across. 

When fall trickles in, I’m breaking out my AeroGarden to start growing herbs for the upcoming winter meals and tea. This year, I’m growing basil, rosemary, mint, dill, and chamomile on my countertop.

08 | Leaf Hunting

If you haven’t hunted for leaves yet… this is an activity you need to do this season! It’s especially fun with kids. I do it regularly because we use leaves as mulch all over the farm and in my yard too. Please, please… never throw away leaves in a bag. Reuse them wherever and whenever you can. 

After I hunt for leaves, I sift through my basket and find leaves that my senses react to. I choose them and then create a leaf garland. I match one leaf with one thing I am grateful for and then write it next to the matching leaf. I’m left with many leaf gratitude cards that fill up a long string. I love to hang the garland on my mantel. 

09 | Leaf Self-Reflection

I intentionally schedule porch time so I can slow down and watch the leaves fall. This is especially glorious when it’s a windy day. While I rest and observe the leaves falling, I pair the porch time with self-reflection and journaling. I meditate over the words and concepts of “Trust” and  “Letting Go” as I notice the leaves falling.

10 | Saving Seed

SURPRISE, it’s taken me four years of flower gardening to learn how to save seeds. And, now that I know how – I can never go back! I love, love teaching people how to save seeds in a therapeutic horticulture session and use it as a de-stressing activity.

It’s an activity to slow down the racing thoughts and get lost in the connection between people and plants. It’s even better when you’re saving seed from an herb plant because as you are extracting the seed the aroma releases and instantly turns into aromatherapy as well.

To continue my seed saving education, I signed up for Floret Flower’s mini seed-saving course this year and am loving all the wisdom so far. 

Happy Fall!!

With lots of 💚 & 🌸,

P.S. I would love to know if you’re doing any of these fall favorites or which favorites have inspired you! You can email me at chelsea@daffodillyfarms.com.