A Children’s Nature Project that Spans Seasons

During the darkness of winter it’s hard for you and your children to participate in nature. I have an idea. Do you have access to an oak tree? If so, you may be lucky enough to bag a few acorns and return home to leach them and bake cookies. If the acorns are gone, why not adopt a local oak tree and keep an eye on it? Through the seasons, the oak changes. During the winter, its roots are saturated by rain and/or snow, but in California, sometimes as early as February, the branches start to leaf out and later in the season, start producing pollen. In the summer, you’ll see little green acorns that turn to a beautiful brown in the fall and drop to the ground. After they drop, the forest animals come along. If your adopted oak is in a city park, those forest animals will be small; squirrels, mice and a variety of birds. But if you live in a rural area, those acorns will attract deer that attract mountain lions. They will attract large black crows, vultures and woodpeckers. They will attract coyotes, fox, ringtail and all matter of wildlife, including field rats. When you get home from surveying your adopted oak, make sure you point out any oak furniture. Teaching our children the value of the “Great oak that was once just a little nut that held its ground,” will prepare your child for the hard task he or she has ahead. Stewardship of the earth.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns, http://www.amazon.com/Acorns-Eatem-How–Vegetarian-Cookbook/dp/1491288973 and The Acorn Mouse, an illustrated children’s story designed to teach the art of gathering and eating acorns. Available here:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Acorn-Mouse-Childs-Eating/dp/1484140672

How Does Mistletoe Grow On Trees? You Might Be Surprised

Mistletoe is a parasite. Some people say it harms trees, others say not so much. Opinions vary and I imagine it has a lot to do with climate.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen mistletoe grow on anything but oak trees, but the American mistletoe also grows on poplar, maple, tupelo, apple and thorn trees. Grapevines and apricot trees that grow in the Himalayas, are sometimes found with mistletoe growing on them.

What really surprised me was the way the mistletoe gets its start. Birds are attracted to the mistletoe berries and after they eat them, they clean their beaks while sitting on a tree branch. Because the berries are sticky, the seeds from the berries attach to the branch. Eventually, the seeds germinate and the mistletoe begins to grow. The roots grow right into the bark of the tree drawing water and nutrients. This parasitic action can cause the tree branch to die and lead to the death of the whole tree.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here:  http://www.amazon.com/Acorns-Eatem-How–Vegetarian-Cookbook/dp/1491288973

Do Acorns Predict the Upcoming Winter Weather?

Along the creek near my home in the Sierra Foothills, I stumbled across a healthy grove of California Valley Oak acorns. They are beautiful and I’d like to add, prolific this year. I find this interesting because Native American legend tells us that abundant acorn harvests predict a hard winter of rain and snow.

The animals who depend on this food are making a pilgrimage to big oak trees. When I see the deer, wild turkeys, squirrels and the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen, descend on these caches, I am reminded to take only what seems fair. If there aren’t many under a tree, I leave them for my forest friends. If there are plenty, I’ll gather a quart. They need to be collected though because once the worms drill into them, they have a feast.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here:  http://www.amazon.com/Acorns-Eatem-How–Vegetarian-Cookbook/dp/1491288973

Acorns… If This Trees Droppin’ Don’t Bother Walkin’

It’s that time of year again! The acorns are dropping here in California and the birds and woodland animals are coming for them. They’re smart too. They love it when cars run over the acorns and crack them. It would not surprise me if they put them there on purpose. I saw one today propped on top of a spike in a barbed-wire fence. It probably fell and got spiked but I did wonder if a big raptor didn’t jam it in there for safe keeping. If you’re into making fun foods with acorns, make sure you leave plenty for the animals, they depend on them. They’re dropping steady. Watch your head.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYZNA9H

Looking for Something to be Proud About? How About African American Attorneys?

In Louisiana, between 1724 and 1803, a slave code was created called the Louisiana Code Noir or the Black Code of Louisiana, designed to give guidance to colonists who “owned” slaves. The French king established these codes of conduct, based on rules created in 1685 for French colonies in the Caribbean. Because I live in an era when the United States chose a Black man as our president, the codes serve as a reminder that we have come a long way. One of the code articles has this sentence:

“… nor shall they be called to give their testimony either in civil or in criminal cases, except when it shall be a matter of necessity, and only in default of white people…”

Think of the thousands (millions?) of African Americans who have successfully finished law school, passed their bar exams, and now serve as legal attorneys for the American people. Of that… we can be proud.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy.

Available Here: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Pansy-Suellen-Ocean/dp/1484900278

Ever Wonder Why the Fleur de Lis is So Popular?

Humans have adorned themselves for thousands of years. The Scots have colorful plaids that represent their tribe. Pacific Northwest Indians tattooed their chins. The Jews have the Star of David. Christians have the cross. Seems everybody has a group they identify with. A popular icon today is the fleur de lis. It was flashed around during the movie, The Da Vinci Code, as if it were the emblem of a powerful secret society. Perhaps it is, but it may also represent bravado among the most oppressed of us all, the enslaved.

During the days of slavery, in French Louisiana the king signed a document called the Louisiana Code Noir. It was also known as the slave code, the laws pertaining to slaves and their masters. If a slave was caught stealing livestock, produce or provisions, they were legally allowed to be whipped by the public executioner and then branded with the mark of the fleur de lis. If a slave ran away and was gone for a month, his ears were cut off and he was branded with the fleur de lis on the shoulder. If a slave ran away a second time, again for a month, he was branded with the fleur de lis on the other shoulder. Quite a sign of rebellion. Unfortunately, we run out of shoulders for the third offence. The punishment for that is death. You have to wonder if a tattoo of the fleur de lis was a status symbol, one of rebellion and anarchy. At least they tried.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy.

Available Here: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Pansy-Suellen-Ocean/dp/1484900278

Survivalist? Want To Stock Up On Food But Wonder What To Buy?

Want To Stock Up On Food But Wonder What To Buy? Purchase grains like brown rice, wheat berries and corn. Both the wheat berries and the corn can be sprouted, increasing their nutrition and they are likely to stay uneaten in your pantry, because how many of us eat un-milled wheat berries or whole kernel corn? If the time arises and you need your survival food, the wheat berries and kernel corn can be soaked and sprouted for a few days before steaming and eating. Brown rice definitely instead of white rice, do some research about the nutrition of white rice compared to brown and you will agree. Wholewheat flour and cornmeal are also good foods for stashing away; flat chapatti-style breads can be made with these flours by adding water and cooking on a cast iron griddle. Sprout seeds are wonderful to have as you can make a nice meal with a chapatti covered in sprouts. Buy a bag of soybeans for your pantry too, they have lots of protein.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYZNA9H

Attitude Is Everything? What About Food?

I met someone last Saturday who was firing questions at me regarding survival food. She knew of my book, Acorns And Eat’em and was hoping to supplement her diet with them. Two problems with that. One, it’s a bad year for acorns in her neck of the woods; they are nowhere to be found. Two, acorns are not great for eating large quantities of unless you are starving, which is what this woman and her boyfriend are worried about. “I have no money,” she said. She held a government job but retired early hoping to find a new life’s calling, then they lost their home and headed for the hills. She has a great attitude and is accomplished at networking. I told her she could eat a lot of potatoes. But I went to bed Saturday night, tossed and turned all night long with her words ringing in my head. “I get to go to the food bank once a month. I only have the nerve to take about eight little red potatoes.” I told her where to look for acorns.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYZNA9H

Preparing Acorns… How Long Do They Need To Leach?

How long you leach acorns depends on the type of oak tree the acorns came from and where they came from. Tanoak acorns from along the California coast may only take a week to leach the tannic acid enough to be edible. Valley oaks in the Sierra Nevada may take two weeks or more while Valley Oaks acorns closer to California’s coast may only take a week to remove the tannic acid. It’s a good idea to become familiar with the acorns you have access to. There’s so much tannic acid in acorns, it takes awhile for them to go bad, especially when you change the water regularly, so there’s no fear of leaving them leaching in the refrigerator for two weeks, so that enough tannic acid is leached and they won’t give you digestive upset. Once you remove most of the tannic acid, they are great to cook with. You haven’t lived until you try acorn chocolate cake.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns. Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYZNA9H

Civil War History: Not Easy Being Abraham Lincoln’s Wife

Abraham Lincoln did not win the presidency because he got a lot of votes, he won because the votes were spread thinly among many candidates and he happened to garner the most. Many in Lincoln’s own political party hated him, fearing the direction he would take the country. His wife Mary didn’t have it any easier. At a time when the North and South were developing deep divides, Mary’s southern roots were not appreciated, to the point of being accused of spying. Those in the more developed eastern region of America, saw her as a greenhorn from the west, while people in the new developing states, thought she was too aristocratic for their tastes. And though Mary had her roots in the south, southerners saw her as the enemy. It seems for Mary Todd Lincoln, the American people were very hard to please.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy.

Available Here: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Pansy-Suellen-Ocean/dp/1484900278