The gardens behind the Berwick Library/Town Hall now include two plots for the Moving Through Project. One plot (#5) has Three Sisters (corn, beans, and squash). The seeds all came from our Seed Library! The Three Sisters is a traditional Indigenous companion planting system that deters weeds and pests, enriches the soil, and provides support. The corn is a support for the beans, the beans provide nitrogen for the soil, and the squash helps keep weeds down. And Marlene, our Indigenous Outreach Liaison, says that Three Sisters soup is delicious!
The other plot (#4) is a Medicine Garden which contains White Sage, Clary Sage, and Tobacco (nioctiana sylvestris). The Clary Sage was donated by Emily at Hen of the Woods.We hope to get a few other tobacco varieties in the ground soon, once the seedlings are strong enough! The herbs in the garden are intended for use in spiritual cermonies and as healing herbs, but are not intended to be ingested.
A few books that you may be interested in are:
Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Mi’kmaq Medicines, by Laurie Lacey
Medicinal Herbs of Eastern Canada, by Brenda Jones
This project is funded [in part] by the Government of Canada. Ce projet est finance [en partie] par le gouvernement du Canada. Ki’j ka na sulieway wejia’q koplnu’ltuk