Week Five: Crab Apples & Mushrooms

This week I've been learning about Creative Health interventions for Trauma. I experienced a session of Narrative Exposure Therapy which involved creating a lifeline of events using a range of small objects. Narrative Exposure Therapy is used for individuals with PTSD, particularly in individuals with complex or multiple traumas. Starting at birth, we mapped out the key life events that have occurred whether good or bad. This led me to think of the things that have defined who I am as a person and to see them as simply life events. This led me to think of a tree that sits in my Dad's garden that was gifted to my parents in celebration of my birth: the crab apple tree.

Crab Apple Tree

The crab apple tree is associated with love, and produces blossom in spring and crab apples in the autumn making it a hive for wildlife. This year the tree is abundant with red crab apples and I took some away to experiment with to see if I can create a natural dye. I will follow the tree through the seasons to see if different elements of the tree will create a natural dye. I will use its bark in the winter, blossom in the spring and leaves in the summer.

Crab Apples

I have also been on a Fungi Walk at Swadlincote Woods led by local mycologist Beverley Rhodes. Beverley was doing a survey of the site to see what types of fungi can be found at the woods and we were her helpers! We found the tiniest of fungi in the woodland, and some had interesting names such as lemon disco, poison pie and weeping widow. It was fascinating to learn that fungi are neither plants nor animals. That they are a kingdom of their own. Fungi are the fruiting body of the mycelium network.

Fungi Survey Samples

Fungi Samples for Natural Colour

This week I have been learning about mushroom colour making from Julie Beeler in my Natural Colour Making course by Plants & Colour. With permission from the Parklife Officer at South Derbyshire District Council I was able to take a small number of samples to experiment with for natural dyes. This included the birch knight, the deceiver and the shaggy ink cap!