A Springtime Pine

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embroiderer, herbalist, certified farmer, and amateur mystic. A few years ago, she reoriented her interests towards fields and meadows; she transitioned from culture to nature. In the past, she described herself as an ethnographer, journalist, archivist and cultural animator.

Common, yet exceptional. Early spring is the perfect time for gathering its oil-rich buds.

Pinus sylvestris is Scots pine. It is so popular that it has become banal, ubiquitous and therefore invisible, because we – humans – prefer special species, rare specimens and exotic beauties. Let’s look at the pine differently; let’s discover its uniqueness and the variety of its countenances.

This tree can grow in any conditions. In sand, on barren land, on windy shores and in the harsh mountain climate. It is found in great numbers in the north moderate zone, it grows in conifer forests and in woods. I present to you Her Majesty the Pine.

Reaching high

It wants to reach the sky, it sometimes reaches 40 or even 50 metres. It can live up to 600 years. Its trunk can reach four-and-a-half metres in circumference in trees growing in clusters. Pines growing in clusters and those in open space are two different stories. The

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Dominika Bok:

embroiderer, herbalist, certified farmer, and amateur mystic. A few years ago, she reoriented her interests towards fields and meadows; she transitioned from culture to nature. In the past, she described herself as an ethnographer, journalist, archivist and cultural animator.

Translation: Adam Zdrodowski

Publish date: 19.03.2021

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Marta Anna Zabłocka:

Editor, literary scholar. Can be find in the woods or libraries.

Witold Szwedkowski, poet and Urban Guerrilla Gardening activist, talks about backyard policy, the spade as a tool of rebellion, and the subversive potential of the pumpkin.

Let’s start with a mindful walk. Think about what you see – how many trees do you pass, what are they, do you know them? The guerrilla needs to survey their area of operation. They must estimate the strength of the enemy – the enemy being the excessive use of concrete. They must sound out the weak points and attack there, firing off seedlings, plunging in a shovel. The guerrilla does not lash out at officials, drivers, or those who are disgruntled at the sight of falling leaves. The guerrilla is against the overuse of concrete – vast stretches of granite, oceans of asphalt and rivers of bitumen. These are the things that leave cities lacking in greenery. And we fight lack of greenery guerrilla-style.

Reaching high

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Grab a Spade and Get Digging!

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