nature

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What is your Celtic Tree Sign?

Our fascination with star signs dates back thousands of years to a time when the sky was still mysterious and NASA hadn’t yet made its mark on the world. In Ancient Greece astrologers were known as scientists.

Is it a way of us understanding our place in the natural world?

Maybe reading your horoscope provides you with a welcome boost in positivity or knowing a few of your key personality traits gives you that extra stream of confidence. Whatever your reason, it is a nice to know that you might share similar positive and negative fates with others in the world. With Astrology we are allowed to remain inquisitive, to wander, to imagine a different future and this longing to predict the future self has stood the test of time.

Farmers used the skies as a calendar using the farmers Almanec calendar to read the pattern of the seasons from the sky.

Travelers used the skies as a compass. First compass was developed by the chinese in 2nd century BC but used for geomancy and fortune telling, not navigation (wikipedia).

The astronomer Ptolemy recorded the 12 signs that we know today and promoted them in his book. For centuries, astronomy and astrology were considered the same thing as both involved the study of the planets. After the 17th century the study of Astronomy became more and more scientific as Newton popularised his theory of gravity.

There was a renewed appreciation for the zodiac in the Age of Aquarius in the 60’s and 70’s. Psychologist Graham Tyson found that people used astrology “under conditions of high stress”. This doesn’t mean that a person believes what is written about their sign but it could be related to the fact that our lives are so stressed and busy we find horoscopes to be a manageable way of making sense of the immediate future. With positive predictions we can imagine a better future.

In a sense it may give some structure to an otherwords disorganised society where we are overloaded with information, facts and figures.

Each star allows us to be a little different from the other but also part of a community. Knowing that their are many more like minded aquarius people out there gives me some hope. In addition, it holds enough mystery that we can elaborate on the general characteristics and create our own narratives.

Everyone knows there sun sign, even if you aren’t a horoscope fan. This is based on where the sun was on your birthday. But have you heard of your Celtic tree sign? Let’s breakdown the Celtic tree signs a little bit.

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5 Easy Mindful Exercises for Outdoor Lovers

It is so easy to forget to stop, look around, listen and learn from the environment around you. Feel free to use these five easy mindful exercises on your next outdoor adventure.

Mindful breathing

Try mindful breathing for 3 minutes. It sounds like a short amount of time but with our habit of distraction this short burst of mindfulness is difficult for some. Take your time. Pick a place that you feel comfortable, I like to go into a forest or under a tree in a nearby park. Now stand still, breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Focus your attention of the act of breathing, letting all other thoughts subside. If you feel you need too you can start by counting the breaths you take but don’t let the counting take over. Do this a few times a week and you will be so much more attentive to the nature around you.

Mindful observation

A simple but effective exercise for all nature lovers. This one is perfect for those of us who love to look around while we are outdoors. It is all about appreciating what’s around you. Choose a flower, a plant, a tree or any natural thing around you. Allow yourself to visually explore this object and examine it from root to tip. Think about its position, its movement and its place in the environment.

Mindful immersion

Instead of treating an activity as a task, enjoy each moment of the experience. This is a lovely mindful activity to try outdoors. So when you go for a walk concentrate on each step. Become absorbed in the motion, one foot in front of the other. Once you get into a rhythm and focus on each step you will feel like you are taking gigantic leaps and enjoy each step a little more.

Mindful listening

Another one that is great when you are living life outdoors. This exercise is designed to help you listen carefully. You pick a song that you have never heard of, pick a quiet place, play the music and allow yourself to discover the new sounds, lyrics, instruments and rhythm. Leave any music preferences aside and listen intently to this new composition.

Mindful Appreciation

If you can do this exercise once a week you will feel more fulfulled. We might not realise it but the majority of things and people in our lives go unappreciated and even unnoticed. On a daily basis we pass by people, interact with people and pass over objects that make our world a better place. For this exercise you need to appreciate three things per day that would usually be undervalued. Maybe it’s the tree that grows the fruit you eat, maybe it’s the smell of flowers or maybe it’s an old pair of socks that never lets you down. Write down the objects/persons at the end of each day and acknowledge how your life is better with it/them in it.

If you enjoyed these easy mindful exercises or have some of your own to share with us we would love to hear from you.

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Inspiring books for Nature Lovers

Everyone loves a good book recommendation. Whether it comes from your local book club, the book store or a fellow reader, like me. Do you have a favourite genre? I certainly don’t.

It seems to me that I will give any genre a try as long as the first chapter doesn’t bore me to sleep and I fall in love with at least one of the characters. Gritty city novels are my go to for the weekdays but on the weekends when I really want to unwind and sit by the fire than a rivoting thriller that takes me into the wild is everything I want in a story.

I’ve been an explorer all of my life. Although I haven’t read every book for adventurers or the great list of top reads for all nature lovers I can give my opinion on a few. Here are my favourite books for nature lovers around the world:

Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Walden was originally published in 1854. While he spent two years in a secluded cabin in the woods at Walden Cabin Thoreau created vivid stories, most of them paying homage to the outdoors and his love of nature.

A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold

Leopold loved nature and people. 60 years after this book was first published his reflections on nature are as important as ever. This is a mesmerizing book that truly connects people and nature.

Phenomenal By Leigh Ann Henion

We follow journalist Henion as she discovers the wonders of the world. In this novel we learn why adventure brings us closer to our true selves and gives back everytime. The beauty of nature is in every section.

The Sea Runners by Ivan Doig

Four servants escape their Alaska work camp in a canoe and face a battle against the elements, hostile Indians and suffering from starvation. This is the ultimate fight for survival.

Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence

If you are an adventure seeker than this book is right up your street.

Elmet by Fiona Mozley

A vivid account of the life of one family’s struggle to remain close to nature in a modern world. This books explores the bonds between father and child like no other. They foraged, they hunted, they lived. This read will keep you engaged to the very last page.

Into the Forest by Jean Hegland

Set in the near-future, Into the Forest is a powerfully imagined novel that focuses on the relationship between two teenage sisters living alone in their Northern California forest home.

These books have helped to inspire my travels over the years and provided me with some motivation. What books inspire you?

We would love to hear some of your book recommendations that we can take with us on our next orchard adventure.

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10 Reasons to fall in love with Fruit Picking

There is nothing we love better than being out in the fields getting back to nature. Why have we abandoned our roots? Let’s reconnect with the land and fall in love with fruit picking. Here are just a few reasons we think fruit picking will give you time for reflection and get you back to basics:

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For more details on any of our fruit filled adventures please contact one of our fruit loving team.

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How to reduce fruit waste?

At Orchardsnearme.com we want to help you to be more food friendly, choose to give the environment a hug and really appreciate the land around you. This is what we are all about so do you want to be more fruit friendly and reduce waste? We have a few tips that can help you use the best of what is on and off the shelves at different seasons.

Today everyone is asking you to go green, be more sustainable and think of the environment but do the major shopping centres tell you where their fruit is coming from, how the farmers are treated and squeezed for margin?

We don’t really know how they undergo the selection process when choosing the fruit to display on the shelves. All we can see the best and brightest fruits make it home to our fruit bowls. So where is the rest? A report by the UK’s Global Food Security Group programme found that over two fifths of all fruit can be wasted because it is considered ugly. Now is a good time to say that we love the ugly duckling. In a plastic filled world where botox is trending and filtered selfies are the norm let us not forgot that our individual blemishes are what make us unique.

So if you are looking for the peaches with the dimples check out your local market stalls. They don’t seem to discriminate against misshapen fruit as much as the larger chains. Go into any organic shop to discover dimpled fruits. Be conscious and actively choose the loneliest fruit on the block.

Another interesting study has highlighted the quality of scarred fruits and the results are pretty postitive. If we always picks the aesthetically pleasing fruit it may not be the tastiest. According the a cambridge review study from 2014 found that organic fruit had lower pesticide content and up to a 40 percent higher antioxidant content. So we say to all of our fruit loving friends enjoy the fruit with all of its scars and dimples.

Here’s an idea for a fun night in, do a fun blind taste test for friends at home. Buy several pieces of fruit at different stores and slice them up for friends. I’ve tried this and there is no comparison between the water injected fruit found in many stories versus the organically less modified fruit found on local stores. The latter being simply delicious. We usually have a few bottles of cider to wash the fruit down. Happy Tasting y’all!

Here are our simple tips to help reduce fruit waste:

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If you have any sustainable fruit or food tips please contact our team and we will do our best to share them with the fruit picking community.

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REASONS TO GET BACK TO NATURE

I don’t know about you but everytime we get outdoors we feel a renewed sense of self. I feel the wind in my face, smell the freshly mowed fields and have a chance to make some head space for new thoughts. So why should be get back to nature and spend a little more time outdoors. Here are eight great reasons we think nature has it’s benefits:

  • Stress Buster
  • Mental health and wellbeing
  • Calming effect – Better mood
  • Increases attention and sharpens your focus
  • Relax and reflect
  • Renewed creativity
  • Strengthen Immunity
  • Lose weight

The above list is by no means definitive. Every positive reason to get back to nature can be associated with looking after your mental health and well-being. Nature provides an escape from your daily routine, an excuse to get off the screens that invade our everyday and a way to reconnect with the world around us.

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19 Inspirational Quotes from Nature for 2019

We all need a little inspiration sometimes and where better to find it than the leaves under our feet and the sky above. Allow yourself some time to reflect on all the beautiful joys that nature has to offer with these inspirational quotes from some of the greatest minds:

In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous. Aristotle

Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you. Monet

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. Ralph Waldo Emerson

The world is big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark. John Muir

In every walk in with nature one receives far more than he seeks. John Muir

Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads. Henry David Thoreau

I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in. John MuirNature touches everything we do

I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery – air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, “This is what it is to be happy”. Sylvia Plath

Normality is a paved road; it’s comfortable to walk, but no flowers grow. Vincent van Gogh

I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it. William Shakespeare

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. Lao Tzu

Choose only one master – nature. Rembrandt

Nothing is art if it does not come from nature. Antoni Gaudi

Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry. Jack Kerouac

I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars. Walt Whitman

I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order. John Burroughs

There is nothing pleasanter than spading when the ground is soft and damp. John Steinbeck

Nature knows no indecencies; man invents them. Mark Twain

I think it annoys God if you walk by the color purple in a field and don’t notice. Alice Walker

Have you an inspirational quote to add to our list. We would love to hear from you and your wisdom from nature.

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