Lisa's blog

The indigenous plants of the Northeast, particularly in New York State, have become my closest allies.  I have grown to know each plant as I have hiked, kayaked and explored the woods, waterways and meadows of my bioregion.  I have encountered so many species, individually, over the past several years and I am still finding new flowers that I have never seen before. Some of the medicinal properties were taught to me from my teachers and some I learned through my own research. Many of these are woodland plants, as much of the northeast was originally forest containing hardwoods and evergreens with meadows here and there created by beaver dams and forest fires.  Unfortunately, many of these amazing plants are endangered due to overharvesting and habitat loss. Some require very specific soil and climate conditions to grow and are especially difficult to find anymore except in the few old growth areas or places where the land has been undisturbed for many years. 

Welcome to By Earth, Root and Flower. I am Lisa and was born and raised in the Mohawk Valley in central New York State among the Adirondack foothills. The immigrants who first arrived in this region came from many different parts of Europe. My paternal grandparents were from Italy and immigrated to the small village of Dolgeville in the 1920’s to work in the industrial mills that were built along the West Canada Creek. My maternal grandparents were Irish and settled the high hills and meadows becoming mostly subsistence farmers grateful to be able to own their own land. Living in this area now and in the time before the first colonial settlements, were the Mohawk and Oneida tribes of the Iroquois Indians. I hold in my heart the deepest respect for these First Peoples whose teachings have impacted my life deeply.