Red Turtle and The Plant Spirits

01/20/2026

https://emergencemagazine.org/feature/seasoning-a-kid/?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&user_id=66c4be505d78644b3a9fda33

This!!! If you want to have a break from despair and doom and allow remembrance of beauty and wonder, please take a look at this! Read the text, but please, please watch the little films interspersed throughout the article because they are the real gold! Make a cup of tea and settle in for a little while. So beautiful!

Filmmaker adam amir takes his young son Rumi out to meet each season with annual practices welcoming the return of snow, migrating animals, blossoms, and berries.

01/17/2026

A sunny January day in the Pacific Northwest is the perfect time to head out to the Cottonwood grove to see what the wind brought down. As I walk through the woods I look for areas that appear like "botanical murder scenes", big downed limbs surrounded by an explosion of branches and twigs. If it was a recent windfall, these branches will be loaded with the sticky, resinous leafbuds, because even though it is mid winter, these trees are already beginning to wake up and get ready for their next growth cycle! Harvesting at this stage is key because the anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving compounds are in this sticky resin. And the perfume of these little buds is heavenly, I wish FB would invent a scratch-n-sniff button!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/509149061/cottonwood-bud-salve-organic-1-oz?sr_prefetch=1&pf_from=shop_home&ref=shop_home_active_3&sts=1&logging_key=da9d353a387666228320e6e44e58885042bf6726%3A509149061

https://www.etsy.com/listing/521086882/cottonwood-bud-tincture-balsam-poplar?sr_prefetch=1&pf_from=shop_home&ref=shop_home_active_36&sts=1&logging_key=920b783e5d1aab7ecff50772b9df61717b741da4%3A521086882

01/16/2026

Hey there! Ready for a restock of your favorite herbal tinctures or salves? On January 25th I will be closing the shop for about 7 weeks while I take my annual winter trip to the sun. I can ship orders as late as Jan 24th. Don't delay, get your supply secured!

12/02/2025

Just in time for the holidays I have restocked my shop with Herbal Sleep Pillowettes! Lots of fun, new fabrics and some old favorites also! Filled with organic Lavender, Rose, Chamomile and Hops, these little sachets will provide all the smells to help you relax and hopefully drift off to sleep more easily! Great stocking stuffers!
Here's the link to my shop. Browse them all!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/RedTurtlePlantSpirit?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

08/30/2025

Sitting by the river in the forest processing freshly harvested Western Red Cedar. Whenever possible I really love working with harvested plants right on the spot. It’s such a peaceful process far from all the usual daily distractions. 💚

07/08/2025

06/18/2025

So much foxglove! Never have I seen such masses of it. It blankets every roadside and meadow of this tiny island! 💚🩷

05/22/2025

Many years ago I planted two climbing roses, one on either side of an arbor. All of a sudden, this year, one of them is blooming RED!!! What??? Have any of my fellow gardeners ever had this experience? Cool but weird! 🧐🧐🧐

04/24/2025

It was time for a little pruning of the Hawthorn tree and just in time for making more leaf/flower tincture!

04/13/2025

So much dog park fun! And got to play with new bestie Ezra again! And it’s a beautiful sunny day in April in Portland! Life is good!😊

03/11/2025

My Aloe Vera is blooming!

03/01/2025

Two days ago on the beach I was approached by a lovely woman with her son and daughter. I was prepared to say “no, gracias” like I do to so many beach vendors. But I didn’t. I listened to her as she presented her wares and I looked at her beautiful creations. And then I realized that she was presenting me with exactly what I had been looking for. Thank you for your magical art. I look forward to meeting you again, soul sister! ❤️