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Karen Sloan

@karsloan.bsky.social
584 followers 529 following 712 posts

Bookish #gardener 😼 #cats 🐾 #flowers #folklore #amwriting 🇨🇦 Canada wallflowerstudiogarden.com * No dm's thx.

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Reposted by Karen Sloan
Dirk Puehl @wunderkammertales.eurosky.social · 16/05/2026
"She is called ‘the Green Glaistig’ from her wan looks and dress of green, the characteristic Fairy colour. She is said to have been at first a woman of honourable position, a former mistress of the house, who had been put under enchantments and now had a Fairy nature given her." (J.G. Campbell)
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hookland.bsky.social @hookland.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Even in parks and commons you find Wood Sprites. To be honest, that aren't exactly hard to detect. If you've live in the county for an length of time I think it becomes instinctual. You look at a tree and just know a Wood Sprite lives there. – Becky Roper #VOH
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
"Rabbit rabbit rabbit", something people say on the 1st day of a month ensures good #luck for the whole of it. US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt once confessed to a friend that he did so, "and would not omit the utterance on any account." 🐇🐇🐇 #FolkloreSunday #rabbits #superstitions
Frederick Morgan, Feeding White Rabbits, ca 1904
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The Folklore Library & Archive @folklorelibrary.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Our next online talk will be taking place via Zoom on Saturday 16 May when ecological storyteller Lisa Schneidau will be joining us to tell TREE FOLK TALES Folklore, storytelling and trees! Book now at bit.ly/flaevents - tickets £5 plus fees, which includes access to a recording of the event
Event graphic with the date and time details of the talk alongside the cover of the book Tree Folk Tales
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Folklore Twitcher @folkloretwitcher.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
In the owl's opinion everyday is long 🦉 Kobayashi Issa (1763–1828) #BookWormSat 😍Yukio Katsuda (1985)
Yukio Katsuda - Horned Owl and Autumn Colours -  1985
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Evan Walker @ecologicalev.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
“Monarchs aggregated in trees covering about 7.2 acres of forest in Mexico, up substantially from 4.4 acres the year before and from 2.2 acres the year before that” 🌎🧪 www.vox.com/climate/4829...
vox.com
Scientists finally have something hopeful to tell us about monarch butterflies
A first look at new research from the forests of central Mexico.
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Maria Popova @mariapopova.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Long before modern science confirmed the neurophysiology of it, nursing founding mother Florence Nightingale, born on this day in 1820, wrote beautifully about the healing power of nature www.themarginalian.org/2022/05/22/f...
themarginalian.org
The Healing Power of Nature and Beauty: Florence Nightingale on Expediting Recovery from Illness and Burnout
“People say the effect is only on the mind. It is no such thing. The effect is on the body, too.”
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Vita Sackville-West @thegardenvsw.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Phlox divaricata, another American, is lovely in a shady place, pale blue and a rampant grower. #gardening
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Linda @lindacdolan.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
🌱 #thicktrunkTuesday A mighty Oak at the end of Wisley’s Bonsai Walk.
A row of Bonsai trees standing on wooden plinths. At the far end of the path stands a large Oak tree.
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pmamtraveller.bsky.social @pmamtraveller.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
The Fairy Way by Margaret Winifred Tarrant
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New Books at Project Gutenberg @new.gutenberg.org · 20/04/2026
New #ebook at Project Gutenberg: The fairy caravan by Beatrix Potter www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/78504
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The Folklore of Warwickshire @warksfolklore.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
A spectral woman dressed in white accompanied by a white stag is reputed to wander Hillborough Lane. In a rhyme attributed to Shakespeare, he described Hillborough as “haunted”. Could she be one of the shades he alluded to?
White stag in Charlecote parkland
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kawarthaNOW @kawarthanow.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Native plant nursery at GreenUP's Ecology Park in #Ptbo opens for the season on the Victoria Day long weekend. Many hands are involved in preparing the nursery for the season opener on Saturday, May 16. kawarthanow.com/2026/05/07/n...
kawarthanow.com
Native plant nursery at GreenUP’s Ecology Park in Peterborough opens for the season on the Victoria Day long weekend | kawarthaNOW
By GreenUP. Many hands are involved in preparing the nursery for the season opener on Saturday, May 16.
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SubRosa )✿( Magick (chat to book a reading) @subrosamagick.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
The Wisdom of Gardens 🌷 #gardening #wellbeing #horttherapy perennial.org.uk/gardens/gard...
perennial.org.uk
Reflections on mental health and York Gate Garden by Andrew Jackson
York Gate garden supporting mental health
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Hilary R Sparkes @hilaryrsparkes.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Dandelion clocks looking like an army of spirit orbs.
Field full of dandelions and flecked with buttercups
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Sing a song of May-time. Sing a song of Spring. Flowers are in their beauty. Birds are on the wing. 🎨 Queen Guinevere's Maying, John Collier, ca 1900 #Spring #MayDay #flowers #poem
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GorgonGoddess_The @avngmedusa.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
off I fly 🦉🔥🧹
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Don Curren 🇨🇦🇺🇦 @dbcurren.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Restaurant for #BlueMorpho #butterlies. Orange slices are the only item on the menu, but no one seems to mind. #ButterflyConsevatory, #Niagara, #Ontario #butterflies #ButterflySky
Photo of several Blue Morpho butterflies perched together on a blue plate devouring orange slices.
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Brian McRoberts @brimcrob.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Leith Allotments Fox sun bathing and not caring one wee bit. #Leith #Allotment #Gardening 🐛🌱🦊
A Fox resting in the sun on a allotment patch.
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Looking forward to this workshop at Abbey Gardens! 💮 Designing Gardens with Native Plants 🐝 Thurs. April 30th - still time to sign up! abbeygardens.ca/event-detail... #gardening #gardensky 🐝 #workshop #comewander #myhaliburtonhighlands
abbeygardens.ca
SALC Program - Garden Design with Native Plants | Abbey Gardens
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The Folklore of Warwickshire @warksfolklore.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
The witch in legend of the Rollright Stones megalith complex on the Oxfordshire/Warwickshire border turned herself into an elder tree. Local lore held that if the tree was cut it bled. #FolkloreSunday
looking over from one side of the Kingsmen stone circle to a clump of trees at the far side. Not the witch tree which has long since gone.
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Hilary R Sparkes @hilaryrsparkes.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Common chickweed (I think) tangled up with cleavers in a Stoneleigh hedge #wildflowerhour #hedgerowchallenge
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
A little patch of blue in the garden is a welcome site! 💙 Scottish folklore states that b/c they're a favourite flower of the fairies it's bad luck to pick bluebells & take them indoors. #fairy #folklore #flowers #bloomscrolling #gardensky
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The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation @xercessociety.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Pollinators have been disappearing. It’s time to bring them back! Whether you’re tending a yard, a community garden, a local park, or even just a tiny balcony, our Bring Back the Pollinators program has you covered with guides, videos, free events, & more! Get started ➡️ bringbackthepollinators.org
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Rachel Deering @racheldeering.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Sunday plans: 🖼️ Vilko Selan Gliha.
An illustration titled Hedgehog's Home, the work of Vilko Gliha Selan and the story by Branko Ćopić. It features a cozy burrow nestled within the roots of a large tree, surrounded by a vibrant, mushroom-filled landscape under a stylized sun. 
Inside the burrow, a hedgehog is depicted sitting at a small table, enjoying a beverage and possibly smoking from a pipe. The interior is furnished with a shelf holding various items, including a jar, a bottle, and books.
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hookland.bsky.social @hookland.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
For folklore often holds the swan as the witches' bird. A deliverer of messages to our dead sisters. A wide-wing psychopomp that can fly between life and death. We make cloaks from its gifted feathers. We tell it our submerged secrets. – #EmilyCBanting, 1982 #FolkloreSunday
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Asawin Suebsaeng @swin24.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Damn right. youtu.be/nXbHOUeFe8s?...
youtu.be
Cat visits the library so often, he now has his own library card
YouTube video by CTV News
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Dr Wernerehl @drwernerehl.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
Straight up #Botany being given a boost on the New York Times today with this story. And yes, botany is fun, interesting, educational, entertaining, but also crucial to understanding our world! Gift article. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/01/r...
nytimes.com
Taking a Birder’s Approach to the Botanical World
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Patrick Lynch @patrlynch1.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Vernal pools page spread. From my new book PONDS: An Illustrated Guide. yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300... 🧪🌿🌎🪶🐡 #wildlife #scicomm #scientificillustration #visualscicomm #scicomm #ponds #Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #naturebookchallenge #booksky #freshwater #wetlands #lakes
Page spread diagram of the inhabitants of a typical vernal pool in the eastern U.S. and southern Canada.
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The Ghost Monk @theghostmonk.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Frederick Church, 'The Witch's Daughter' (1881) #OwlishMonday #owl #witch #witchcraft #illustration #oldillustrations #artsky
A young woman in a long green gown sits on a crescent moon beside a moon. They regard each other apparently with affection while grey and white clouds swirl around them.
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Sing a song of May-time. Sing a song of Spring. Flowers are in their beauty. Birds are on the wing. 🎨 Queen Guinevere's Maying, John Collier, ca 1900 #Spring #MayDay #flowers #poem
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Coffin Boffin @coffinboffin.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
GOTHIC REVELRY Bats and fairies indulge in some nocturnal revelry and dancing in these gothic works by lesser-known women artists. Hilda Hechle 1902-1938 'A Moonlight Phantasy' and Florence Vernon 1871-1905 'The Fairy Haunt'. #MythologyMonday
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
O'Keeffe's wonderful art taught me how to see flowers. 💐
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Canadian Paintings @canadianpaintings.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Reforestation Emily Carr 1936
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Open Culture @openculture.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
John Turturro Reads Italo Calvino’s Fairy Tale, “The False Grandmother,” in a Short Animated Film
openculture.com
John Turturro Reads Italo Calvino’s Fairy Tale, “The False Grandmother,” in a Short Animated Film
In 1956, Italo Calvino, one of Italy's finest postwar writers, published Italian Folktales, a series of 200 fairy tales based sometimes loosely, sometimes more strictly on stories from a great folk tr...
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
Why Abbey Gardens should be on your road-trip list this year, a 300 acre former gravel pit now transformed into a community hub. 🐾 #MyHaliburtonHighlands #Ontario #nature #tourism #comewander torontolife.com/culture/why-...
torontolife.com
Why Abbey Gardens should be on your road-trip list - Toronto Life
A desolate 300-acre gravel pit in the Haliburton Highlands has been turned into a community hub
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Earth Day is a gentle reminder to step outside, slow down, and feel more connected to the world around us. 🐾 🌱 #HappyEarthDay #gardensky #nature #wildlife
Chipmunk in my garden. 
(Photo by me, Karen Sloan)
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womensartbluesky.bsky.social @womensartbluesky.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Petal deer, 2012 by Ellen Jewett, sculptor known for her often surreal depictions of animals #WomensArt
Photo of a sculpture resembling a light brown deer walking left, its antlers extend into branches and leaves, all against a grey background
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Dirk Puehl @wunderkammertales.eurosky.social · 22/04/2026
Sometimes they come back. From old tales. And walk among us. For #EarthDay today, we have such an old tale, about green children from the Middle Ages. And it might even be a tale along the lines of... hope, maybe? Read more in our 53rd #darkspringtide story below. 🎨 Charles Folkard
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Jess Piper @piperformissouri.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Me, being left behind…❤️
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Little Free Library @littlefreelibrary.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Happy Earth Day! 🌍 Let's celebrate by connecting with nature and our communities through books. Whether you're sharing seeds in a Little Free Library, exchanging nature-themed books, or simply enjoying a good read outdoors, we hope you find joy and inspiration in the world around us.
Wooden Little Free Library box filled with books, topped with succulents, labeled Sharing Station on a suburban sidewalk.
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Maria Popova @mariapopova.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Virginia Woolf on finding beauty in the uncertainty of time, space, and being www.themarginalian.org/2020/04/03/v...
themarginalian.org
Virginia Woolf on Finding Beauty in the Uncertainty of Time, Space, and Being
Calibration and consolation for those moments when it seems impossible that we should ever again recompose the world’s broken fragments into a harmonious whole.
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Find out which #birds you can build a #nest box or nest structure for in your region & habitat. Via: @cornellbirds.bsky.social 🐦 #birdsky #diy nestwatch.org/learn/all-ab...
nestwatch.org
Right Bird, Right House
Want to help birds but not sure which ones you can attract? Use this interactive tool to find out which birds are likely to nest in your region and habitat, and download the appropriate nest box plans...
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Rachel Deering @racheldeering.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Lilies of the Valley, Albert Durer Lucas, 1888.
Lilies of the Valley, violets and forget me nots, ferns, small butterfly. Painting.
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Dirk Puehl @wunderkammertales.eurosky.social · 21/04/2026
"I had, by cross-ways and by-paths, once more drawn near the tract of moorland;" ("Jane Eyre: An Autobiography", 1847) Charlotte Brontë was born #OTD 1816 🎨 Edward A. Wilson (1944) #booksky #bookillustration
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VenetiaJane’s Garden @venetiajane.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
21 April is Parilia, the Roman festival honouring Pales, a pastoral deity. It’s said on this day two fishermen refused to observe her rites. In anger she turned them into an alder and a willow. They still haunt the riverbank, the willow trailing branches like lines cast for fish.
Collage of alder and willow: a mature weeping willow in an open field; a botanical illustration of Salix (willow) with long trailing leaves; a willow tree reflected in water; a botanical plate of Alnus (alder) with leaves and catkins; a tall alder in winter; and a riverside painting with willows leaning over the water.
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Karen Sloan @karsloan.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Seeing crocuses blooming is a lovely sight after such a long winter, & just in time for #EarthDay, too. 🌱🐾 #MotherNature #Ontario #bloomscrolling #flowers #plantsky
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Vita Sackville-West @thegardenvsw.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
I should imagine that April, May and June see it at its best. One can learn so much by visiting a #garden such as this; it offers a short-cut to hard won experience. #gardening
Nymans Garden
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