Jim talks with Ryan Blosser about the ideas in his book Mulberries in the Rain: Growing Permaculture Plants for Food and Friendship, co-authored with Trevor Piersol. They discuss the motivation behind writing a permaculture book, the human sector in permaculture design, financial challenges of permaculture farming, 8 forms of capital, food forest design principles, plant guild functions & relationships, persimmons, hunting stories, willows, redbuds, bourbon, black locust properties, rhubarb as a barrier plant, spring bulbs, garlic, Hawaiian adventures, the benefits of tulsi, growing cannabis, uses of comfrey, beets for deer plots, burdock as medicine, community, climate considerations, water management, soil fertility, aesthetics in design, and much more.

Episode Transcript

Mulberries in the Rain: Growing Permaculture Plants for Food and Friendship, by Ryan Blosser and Trevor Pearsall

Jitterbug Perfume, by Tom Robbins

Ryan Blosser is a farmer, educator, permaculture designer, writer, and mental health professional. He is co-founder of the Shenandoah Permaculture Institute and owner/operator of Dancing Star Farm. In addition, he holds a teaching license in the State of Virginia and earned an MA and Ed.S. in clinical mental health counseling from James Madison University. Ryan served as Executive Director of Project GROWS, an educational non-profit farm dedicated to growing healthy communities. He also taught permaculture design and gardening in Staunton Public Schools before accepting a position with Waynesboro School, where he directs the continued development of the Waynesboro Education Farm. The intersection of his twin passions for growing food and helping people fuels his unique perspective on building community health and resilience through permaculture design. Ryan lives in Churchville, VA.